6 players who have reached the quarterfinals at French open after turning 35 ft. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer
Novak Djokovic joined an elite club with his fourth-round win at the 2022 French Open. The Serbian superstar became just the sixth player in the Open Era to reach the quarterfinals at the French Open after turning 35 years old, joining Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, among others.
The Serbian celebrated his 35th birthday just a week ago. He joined the list with a comfortable 6-1, 6-3, 6-3 win over Diego Schwartzman, adding a couple more records to his name in the process. Among them, he became just the second male player to play 100 singles matches at Roland Garros and reached his 13th consecutive quarterfinal at the event.
Tenistas con presencias en cuartos de final de Roland Garros tras cumplir 35 años (Open Era/Men’s Singles):
Pancho Gonzales, 1968
Istvan Gulyas, 1971
Tommy Haas, 2013
Rafa Nadal, 2021
Novak Djokovic, 2022📝 Tenistas con presencias en cuartos de final de Roland Garros tras cumplir 35 años (Open Era/Men’s Singles):
🇺🇸 Pancho Gonzales, 1968
🇭🇺 Istvan Gulyas, 1971
🇩🇪 Tommy Haas, 2013
🇨🇭 Roger Federer, 2019
🇪🇸 Rafa Nadal, 2021
🇷🇸 Novak Djokovic, 2022
Reaching a Majors quarterfinal after turning 35 years old is a special achievement and we look at the only players to have done so at the French Open.
Novak Djokovic - 2022 French Open
The current World No. 1 reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal after turning 35 at his most successful Grand Slam (in terms of matches won). The 20-time Grand Slam champion is chasing a record-equalling 21st Major title and is just three wins away from doing so.
If Djokovic ends up winning the 2022 French Open, he will also become just the second man to defend his French Open title in the last 16 years. The Serb will also extend his personal record of most matches won at a single Grand Slam to 88 matches.
Quart de finale N°16 pour Novak à Roland-Garros ✊🇷🇸
#RolandGarros https://t.co/wnky6J1Z0f
Rafael Nadal (2021)
The Spaniard is the most successful player in the history of the French Open with 13 titles to his name on the claycourts in Paris. Nadal joined the club of players reaching the French Open quarterfinals after turning 35 with his fourth-round win in the 2021 edition over Jannik Sinner of Italy. He eventually bowed out of the tournament in the semifinals, falling short in a hard-fought four-set battle against Djokovic.
He has only ever lost once in the quarterfinal stages of Roland Garros (2015 vs Djokovic). Nadal's 13 Roland Garros titles are the most any player has won in a single Grand Slam event. He also leads the pack with 108 wins at Roland Garros (after his third-round win in the 2022 edition) and is expected to further extend that record.
The Spaniard also won a Grand Slam after turning 35 years old at the Australian Open earlier this year. He also had his best-ever start to a season this year, winning 20 matches in a row to kick-off 2022.
Nadal's last title at the French Open was in 2020, when he defeated Djokovic comfortably in the final.
Roger Federer (2019)
The Swiss Maestro became just the fourth male player ever to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal at the age of 35 and above, by reaching the Roland Garros quarterfinals back in 2019. As it turns out, that was Federer's last appearance in the French Open quarterfinals.
Federer attained the feat after beating Argentinian Leonardo Mayer 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 in the fourth-round of the 2019 edition. The 20-time Grand Slam champion eventually bowed out in the last-four stages in a 3-6, 4-6, 2-6 result against Rafael Nadal.
The French Open eluded Federer for quite a while. It was the only Grand Slam title he had not won in almost six years since winning his first (Wimbledon 2003). He finally clinched the title in 2009, defeating Robin Soderling in the final, who was Nadal's conqueror in that edition.
Tommy Haas (2013)
A former Wimbledon and Australian Open semifinalist, Haas reached the 2013 Roland Garros quarterfinals to become the third male player to reach the last-eight stage of a Major after his 35th birthday.
Haas defeated Mikhail Youzhny in straight sets to enter the quarterfinal stages of the 2013 edition, where he lost to Djokovic. The last-eight appearance was his best result ever at Roland Garros, before retiring from competitive tennis in 2018, at the age of 40.
The German's greatest achievements in tennis include reaching a career-high of No. 2 in the ATP singles rankings back in 2002. He was a silver medalist at the 2000 Sydney Olympic games. Haas also has a Masters 1000 title to his name, winning at Stuttgart in 2001.
Istvan Gulyas (1971)
The late Istvan Gulyas was just the second male player aged 35 or above to reach the French Open quarterfinals. The Hungarian defeated George Clifford Richey Jr. 6-4, 7-5, 4-6, 6-2 to reach the 1971 Roland Garros quarterfinals. He bowed out in his next match.
Gulyas was a former World No. 8 on the ATP tour and won 20 singles titles throughout his career. By reaching the 1966 French Open final, he became just the second Hungarian male tennis player to reach a Grand Slam final.
Gulyas is remembered for a great gesture ahead of that final, when he allowed his opponent Tony Roche an extra 24 hours of rest to recover from an ankle injury.
Pancho Gonzales (1968)
The late Ricardo Alonso "Pancho" Gonzales was a former World No. 1. Gonzales has the distinction of being the first man in the history of tennis to reach the Roland Garros quarterfinals after turning 35 years old.
In fact, he was 40 when he reached the 1968 Roland Garros quarterfinals after defeating Istvan Gulyas 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 in the fourth round.
Gonzales won two US Open titles (in 1948 and 1949) and was a two-time Roland Garros semifinalist (1949 and 1968). The American was known to be a fan favorite during his playing days.