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French Open tennis - Novak Djokovic sets up Rafael Nadal semi after curfew chaos in Matteo Berrettini clash

Dan Quarrell

Updated 10/06/2021 at 06:57 GMT

The final evening session of the tournament had spectators for the first time with 5,000 lucky fans able to watch the French Open quarter-final between Novak Djokovic and Matteo Berrettini at Roland Garros. There were very strange scenes as the players were forced to leave the court while the fans very slowly and reluctantly left after the 11pm CET curfew and Djokovic eventually won through.

Highlights: Djokovic beats Berrettini in wild late match with curfew drama

Novak Djokovic set up a mouth-watering French Open semi-final clash with Rafael Nadal after he beat Matteo Berrettini 6-3 6-2 6-7 7-5 in their last-eight encounter in Paris.
The final evening session of the clay court Grand Slam had spectators for the first time with 5,000 fans able to watch the last-eight encounter at Roland Garros - but with a curfew set for 11pm CET.
But after Berrettini won a third set tie-break to take the match into a fourth set, fans did not heed the instructions to leave the stadium to be in accordance with the curfew in place as a condition of their attendance.
As such, the players then left the court to attempt to ensure that the fans would promptly exit Court Philippe Chatrier. The stands were eventually cleared and play was able to resume.
When play did get back underway, a very emotional Djokovic - who kicked an advertising hoarding in frustration and let out several roars - closed out the win.
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'Look what it's done to him!' - Furious Djokovic kicks board after match point slip

An amusing moment early on saw the match halted amid a chorus of boos from other fans when a group of spectators strolled in very late with their shopping in tow to delay proceedings.
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'Where have they been?' - Djokovic made to wait as fans boo latecomers

World number one Djokovic, the 2016 champion, and an 18-time Grand Slam title winner, struggled to find the funny side as he was preparing to serve while trying to make his mark on the opening set.
The other spectators inside Court Philippe Chatrier let their feelings known with loud booing as the fans eventually settled down and Djokovic was finally able to serve.
Victory for Djokovic sees him through to the semi-finals for the 11th time at Roland Garros and two wins away from becoming only the third man in history to win all four Grand Slams on two occasions.
Earlier, third seed and 13-time champion at Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal, reeled off nine games in succession to overcome Diego Schwartzman in quite brilliant fashion on Court Philippe Chatrier.
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'Wow!' - Watch Djokovic's wild reaction to reaching semis after curfew chaos

A Nadal v Djokovic clash in the last four will be an encounter fans will love and it is a repeat of last year's final in the postponed autumnal edition.
The three most successful players in the history of the men's game have won 17 of the last 20 Grand Slam titles between them.
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'I'm in shock!' - Djokovic and Berrettini leave court as fans stay despite curfew

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Watch all the action from the 2021 French Open live on Eurosport, eurosport.co.uk and the Eurosport app with 13-time champion Nadal eyeing a remarkable 14th title and the women's draw wide open at Roland Garros in Paris.
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