Nadal in French Open quarterfinals after five-set thriller

Nadal is into the French Open quarterfinals. Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports

Rafael Nadal survives five-set marathon to reach French Open quarterfinals

By Adam Stites | Last updated 5/29/22

Rafael Nadal and top-ranked Novak Djokovic will meet in the quarterfinals at the 2022 French Open after Nadal survived a five-set marathon match against Felix Auger-Aliassime on Sunday.

Nadal, who turns 36 on Tuesday, played for more than four hours against the 21-year-old Canadian before coming out on top with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 victory.

UN-REAL @RafaelNadal @rolandgarros | #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/06S6Tpl2td
— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 29, 2022

Nadal is the all-time leader in Grand Slam men's singles titles with 21 and he's done most of his damage at Roland-Garros with 13 career French Open titles. Last year, Nadal had a streak of four straight titles in the tournament end with a semifinals loss against Djokovic.

This year, Nadal won the Australian Open in January while Djokovic was out of action due to his vaccination status. Djokovic won all of his first four matches of the French Open in straight sets, including a 6-1, 6-3, 6-3 win against 16th ranked Diego Schwartzman on Sunday.

Djokovic has 20 career Grand Slam titles and needs one more to tie Nadal.

More must-reads: