The Serbian dominated his French opponent on Rod Laver Arena with a resounding 6-0, 6-0, 6-3 victory, reaffirming his position as the undeniable frontrunner to claim an 11th title at Melbourne Park.
“I really wanted to lose that game in the third set because the tension was building up so much in the stadium,” he joked, referring to the possibility of winning without losing a game. “I just needed to get that out of the way and re-focus.”
The current world number one has reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam for the 58th time, matching Roger Federer‘s men’s record and maintaining a firm grip on the sport.
Boasting a remarkable 32-match winning streak at the Australian Open, he hasn’t faced defeat since his loss to South Korea’s Chung Hyeon in 2018. Notably, the 10-time champion skipped the 2022 competition due to his coronavirus vaccination status.
Despite Mannarino’s recent late-career resurgence with three titles in 2023 (Newport, Astana, and Sofia), the top seed showcased his dominance, making the French player appear ordinary.
Djokovic, displaying relentless focus, shrugged off break points in the opening game, securing a 2-0 lead. The Serbian ace repeated this success throughout the match, delivering an utterly dominant performance that resulted in a 6-0, 6-0, 6-3 victory.
Playing under the roof due to a brief shower, Djokovic won 28 points to Mannarino’s 12 in an exceptional display. Although Mannarino briefly held serve three times in the third set, it only postponed the inevitable as the top seed eventually closed out the match.
Despite a slow start to his 2024 Australian Open campaign due to a virus, Djokovic, aged 36, has overcome the challenges and elevated his performance as the tournament progresses.
The Serb, a year older than his opponent, said he had played “great from the first point to the last”.
“The last couple of days have been really good,” he added. “It’s going in a positive direction.”
Djokovic will meet either seventh seed Stefanos Tsitsipas or American 12th seed Taylor Fritz for a place in the semi-finals.
(With AFP inputs)
