- Kasper Ruud thinks tennis is one of the toughest sports in the world
- Novak Djokovic’s win against Lorenzo Musetti at the French Open finished at 3am.
Casper Ruud has claimed tennis is one of the toughest sports in the world after Novak Djokovic’s win over Lorenzo Musetti at the French Open finished at 3am.
Fans described Djokovic as “phenomenal” after he rallied from two sets down to one to win the third round at 3:07 a.m. local time after a four-and-a-half-hour battle.
Djokovic won 7-5, 6-7 (6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-0 to remain in contention for a defending French Open title.
The five-set match broke the tournament’s previous record, set by Rafael Nadal when he beat Jannik Sinner at 1:26 a.m. at the 2020 French Open.
Ruud, who finished runner-up to Djokovic at last year’s French Open, stressed that tennis is one of the few sports where stars play until the early hours of the morning.
A Norwegian wrote to X: “Could tennis be one of the toughest sports in the world? What other sport requires you to play/compete/perform for 4+ hours at 3am?”
One fan questioned Ruud about the timing of the 2 a.m. post, with the Norwegian revealing he had been watching Djokovic’s match while recovering from his late-night win over Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry.
“I just finished a match two hours ago,” Ruud said. After that I’ll cool down on the bike for 15 minutes, do a press conference and media, take a 10-minute ice bath, take a shower, eat, then get some treatment and a massage. I’m in the treatment phase now.”
Djokovic addressed the crowd in French after his win, saying “it’s impossible to sleep” and joking that he would party with the fans.
“Thank you so much. So great that you guys stayed. What time is it? It’s 3 a.m., you guys should be going to bed. What are you doing here? You guys are still so young,” Djokovic said.
“No, thank you so much. That was probably the best, most exciting game I’ve ever played here.”
“Who’s going to sleep? I can’t sleep with this adrenaline. If you’re going to party, I’m going too. Let’s go.”
Fans on social media reacted to the late finishing time, with one claiming it was “completely ridiculous”.
“I think it’s completely ridiculous that the No. 1 ranked player in the world is playing the fifth set at nearly 3 a.m. It’s what makes tennis so unique and what I love about the sport — there’s nothing else that can compare to it,” they wrote.
Another user stressed that forcing players to play at 3am is “unacceptable.”
They wrote: “A great effort by Djokovic. But once the joy of victory wears off, there’s the fact that he missed out on a crucial rest day in his quest to win a Grand Slam title. It’s completely unacceptable and inexcusable for any player to play a Grand Slam match after 3 a.m.”
Another user reflected that Djokovic handled the situation in typical fashion.
They wrote: “It’s classic Novak when Djokovic casually pulls off a 5th set comeback win at 3am at #RolandGarros and speaks fluent French in the post-match interview.”
One user added that Djokovic is “a master of his craft.”
They wrote: “Djokovic is a master of his craft at his age… 4 hours 29 minutes at 3am in Paris. What a man.”
Additionally, one user said it was “unusual” for Djokovic to be playing in these conditions at age 37.
They wrote: “37 years old. After 3am. 4.5+ hours of tennis. Novak Djokovic is something else entirely. #RolandGarros.”