The major favorites have advanced to the quarterfinals of the French Open. World number one Novak Djokovic made history on Monday evening when he came back to win against Francisco Cerundolo in an already classic clay-court battle over five sets. Djokovic will now face the great Nordic hope, Casper Ruud.

The Serbian legend has reached his 59th Grand Slam quarterfinal, surpassing Roger Federer, who reached 58 quarterfinals during his outstanding career. Djokovic also secured his 370th match win in the four Grand Slam tournaments, which is another new record.

In the quarterfinal, Djokovic will face Casper Ruud, who defeated the twelfth-seeded American Taylor Fritz in an entertaining four-set match on Monday. The 25-year-old Norwegian won the last encounter against Djokovic in the semifinals in Monte Carlo earlier this year.

The 123rd edition of the French Open has offered unusually few surprises. Eleventh-ranked Alex de Minaur is the lowest-ranked among the quarterfinalists, and all of the top 15 seeded players advanced to the third round this year. This hasn’t happened since 1955 in the French capital.

Among those challenging for this year’s title are Stefanos Tsitsipas and Grigor Dimitrov, both of whom have lifted The Swedish Royal Trophy in the Royal Tennis Hall. For 33-year-old Dimitrov, the progress in Paris is particularly emotional. Thanks to his success, the popular Bulgarian has now reached at least the quarterfinals in all Grand Slam and Masters tournaments during his career.

Photo: Peter Staples/ATP Tour