French Open 2021: Alexander Zverev sets up fourth-round clash with Kei Nishikori

German sixth seed Alexander Zverev eased into the French Open last 16 for the fourth successive year on Friday and set up a fourth-round clash against former world No 4 Kei Nishikori.

Nishikori booked a place in the French Open last-16 when his Swiss opponent Henri Laaksonen retired with an injury after dropping the opening set 7-5 while Zverev dispatched Serbia’s Laslo Djere 6-2 7-5 6-2 to reach the fourth round on Friday.

Zverev won the first four games en route to bagging the opening set without much bother under the roof of Court Philippe Chatrier.

The German took command of the third set with a break in the first game and never looked back.

“I was down 5-3, 40-0 on his serve… you don’t always come back from this score,” said Zverev.

“I knew had to play much better than in the first two rounds. The further I go into the tournament the better I play.

World number 150 Laaksonen, playing in the third round of a major for the first time, appeared to have picked up a thigh injury early in the opening set and was forced to take an off-court medical timeout.

“I didn’t feel anything (in my) last matches. Yesterday on practice nothing. Today warmup nothing either. When I started the match, everything was fine,” Laaksonen told reporters.

“So then I went on the 2-1 game to the backhand corner and I tried to recover from there and then I felt pain on the adductor, abductor — I don’t know which one it is inside. I couldn’t move then anymore.”

The 29-year-old struggled to move around the court as Nishikori claimed the only break point of the set to take a 6-5 lead before rain halted play on the outer courts.