French Open Day 10: Djokovic out in shock loss to bold Italian Checchinato in match of tournament

Marco Checchinato wasn’t supposed to make it this far. He’s ranked No. 72 and had never gotten past the first round at a grand slam. That is, until now, coming out of nowhere to win in a thrilling four sets against friend and legend Novak Djokovic, 6-3, 7-6(4), 1-6, 7-6(11).

Novak Djokovic has been building up to a major comeback win all clay season, but he was halted by a player that no one saw coming in the quarterfinals, Marco Cecchinato, who before this week, had never won a grand slam match. Not only did he defeat one of the greatest tennis players in the game, he won in a thrilling four-set match that gave the spectators one of the greatest moments of the tournament, and certainly one of the best tie-breaks of the match.

Mind you, that the fourth set came to a tie -reak was remarkable, considering that the third set went 6-1, then Djokovic progressed ahead to 5-1 in the fourth and it looked like the Serb was regaining control and back on familiar ground. However, the Italian powered back in dramatic fashion and the rest of the match was utterly enthralling.

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And when the 25-year-old Sicilian got the fourth to a tie-break, what a tie break it was, encompassing 22 minutes of absolutely thrilling, high-level tennis that brought out the best out of both players, inspiring several standing ovations throughout just the extra points alone.

Once Checchinato hit the line with precision for the last point, winning 13-11 in epic fashion, even Djokovic himself couldn’t help admiring his effort. He graciously crossed over to the net to hug and congratulate him, a true friend.

https://twitter.com/JeanLouisBinick/status/1004052267085987840

“On the return, when I saw (the ball) on the line, it was the best moment of my life,” Cecchinato said after the match during the on-court interview.

Cecchinato was the first Sicilian to win an ATP tournament. He’s the first Italian into a grand slam semifinal since 1978. Marco Cecchinato making it this far into a grand slam represents everything great about sports, opportunity, and frankly, the human spirit.

“Am I dreaming?” Cecchinato asked afterwards during his on-court interview. Whatch his charm for yourself.

You could see how much the career win meant for not just him, but his entire family. Just look at his cousin crying in the player’s box:

But understandably, it’s a terrible disappointment for Djokovic, who was a gracious friend to Cecchinato at the end of the match, but a completely different person in his post-match press conference. It lasted a testy four and a half minutes, with the devastated Serb saying he’s not even sure he wants to participate in the upcoming grass season, leaving hopes of Wimbledon up in the air.

It’s difficult to participate in the best match of the tournament and be on the losing side in such a compelling event.

The other quarterfinal match between Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev turned out to be a bit less captivating, due to the German’s injury, which prevented the match from being the expected clash it was expected to be, with the Austrian winning in straight sets, 6-4, 6-2, 6-1. But no worries, Zverev’s favorite journalist from Yorkshire was able to cheer him up:

Dominic Thiem is the only player to have beaten Rafael Nadal on clay this season. He also did it last year. If there’s one person who can stop the Rafa “Undecima” train, it’s him.

Sloane Stephens defeated Russia’s Daria Kasatkina in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1, while her compatriot beat Yulia Putentseva 7-6(5), 6-4, to set up their all-American clash in the semifinal.

The second set of quarterfinals take place on Wednesday.