As Novak Djokovic eased past Aljaz Bedene at Roland Garros on Friday, a bona fide superstar of Italian music was enjoying the on-court rhythm of the World No. 1’s third-round display.

Eros Ramazzotti, who has sold over 60 million records across a 30-year career, was in the stands on Court Philippe Chatrier to witness Djokovic’s 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 victory. Ramazzotti, a singer, instrumentalist and songwriter who is also hugely popular in the Spanish-speaking world, is a long-time tennis fan but was paying his first visit to Roland Garros as a guest of the French Tennis Federation.

“I always follow tennis and enjoy watching matches,” said the 58-year-old Ramazzotti, who has performed duets with a catalogue of stars including Cher, Tina Turner, Luciano Pavarotti and Ricky Martin. “The site is very impressive, I had never been here before. It was nice to see the behind the scenes and meet some of the players.

“John McEnroe used to be my favourite player, but this generation has a lot of amazing athletes and it’s really fun to follow the sport.”

A seven-time year-end No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Djokovic’s own Italian language skills are well-known. Two years ago, the Serbian even visited one of Italy’s most well-known music festivals in Sanremo, where he sang ‘Terra Promessa’, one of Ramazzotti’s most famous songs.

Bernabe Zapata Miralles did not think he would be in Paris on Saturday, but his best performance in a Grand Slam at Roland Garros has scuppered any plans the 25-year-old Valencian may have made before the event kicked off.

Soon after the qualifier beat John Isner on Friday to book himself a place in the last sixteen in the French capital, Zapata Miralles started a special campaign when he sat before the media at his post-match press conference — he asked for help sourcing a ticket for Saturday evening’s Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid at the Stade de France.

“This is a public announcement. If anyone has a ticket…I’d like to go!” the Spaniard joked. “Tomorrow [Saturday] I’ll watch the match…if I can do so in the stadium, it would be better. I’m from Valencia but I support [Real] Madrid. I want Madrid to win the Champions League final against Liverpool!”

By beating Isner, Zapata Miralles moved into the Top 100 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, as well as earning himself the opportunity to go even further at the clay-court Grand Slam. On Sunday, the Spaniard will face Alexander Zverev for a place in the quarter-finals at the second major of the year.

“I’m trying not to think too much about being in the last 16,” Zapata Miralles acknowledged. “I’m still exhausted and in shock. I’ve tried to focus on the match and forget about the result and the round. It’ll start to sink in when I return home, honestly.

“I’m very excited. It’s a tournament that I love, and I didn’t expect to reach the round of 16. It’s a dream. I’m just thinking about improving and continuing to work hard. I have mental lows, the matches are long for me. It’s more exciting playing in these rounds, but I find it much harder to make the effort to play these matches.

“I’m going to try and keep up this level of work every week, if possible.”

Zapata Miralles is now reaping the rewards of hours of hard work behind the scenes, while he tries to find the best way to prepare to face Zverev.

“Now it’s time to rest and get ready for Sunday,” said the Valencian. “I don’t know if I’ve reached my limit or not, but I’m not too concerned. I just want to work well. If I’ve given my all on court, I can go home with peace of mind. I’ll find it hard to manage the nerves, but I’ll try and forget about them.”

To do so, Zapata Miralles may follow the lead of one of his idols, all of whom have helped him progress in one way or another. “On a mental level, [Rafael] Nadal is the best in history,” said Zapata Miralles. “I followed David Ferrer from when I was young, as he’s Valencian, and now I often watch Pablo Andujar.”

Revenge is a dish best served cold. Carlos Alcaraz did just that against Sebastian Korda on a chilly Friday night at Roland Garros.

The sixth-seeded Spaniard fell to Korda last month in Monte Carlo, his only clay-court loss this year, but it was Alcaraz’s night in Paris as he completed a convincing 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 win to reach the fourth round. In what was also a rematch of last year’s championship match at the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals, Alcaraz hammered 24 winners and broke Korda four times to advance in two hours and six minutes.

“It’s amazing to play in such a great atmosphere. I think the people enjoyed the match and I’m glad to play in front of such a good crowd,” said Alcaraz in his on-court interview. “In the early matches, I’m trying to have fun out there. I love playing tennis and playing on these courts, so I’m enjoying every second.”

Drop it like it’s hot 🔥@alcarazcarlos03 | #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/rJxYZO7gSM

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 27, 2022

It was a significantly shorter night than his second-round match on Wednesday with Albert Ramos-Vinolas. The 19-year-old saved a match point in the fourth set against his fellow Spaniard before forcing a deciding set and ultimately prevailing after four hours and 34 minutes.

A lengthy recovery process immediately following the match paid dividends against Korda. Showing no signs of his brutal battle two days earlier, Alcaraz scampered about the court and leaned into his powerful groundstrokes with full force.

“I would say that I’m aggressive all the time,” said Alcaraz. “It doesn’t matter if I’m losing, winning, tough moment, tough match, I keep my style the whole match.”

Alcaraz secured the first break of the night just nine minutes into play, ripping a forehand winner for a 2-1 lead. While the American was pushed to the brink in most of his service games, Alcaraz continued holding comfortably and served out the set on his first attempt.

Korda had two chances to break Alcaraz at 2-1 in the second set, but succumbed to his opponent’s aggressive play on both. One game later, the sixth seed yelled in delight after hitting a forehand winner to break Korda. Showing that he’s still adding new tools to his game, Alcaraz served-and-volleyed three times while serving for the set at 5-4 and went on to take a commanding lead.

The Spaniard turned up the heat in the final stages of the match, reeling off five consecutive games and five straight baseline winners to wrap up play. Alcaraz didn’t face a break point throughout the night.

Awaiting Alcaraz in the next round is No. 21 seed Karen Khachanov, who took out No. 10 seed Cameron Norrie 6-2, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4. Khachanov let slip a 4-2 lead in the third set, but regrouped strongly to advance in three hours and 37 minutes.

Although the 26-year-old arrived to Paris with a 4-5 record on clay this season, his most consistent Grand Slam success has come at this event. Khachanov reached the quarter-finals in 2019 and the fourth round on three other occasions.

“I just practised with him once, but I’ve watch other matches from him, so I know that it’s going to be a tough match,” said Alcaraz. “But at the same time, he’s a tough opponent and I like those matches.”