Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz inched closer to a blockbuster semi-final showdown with imperious victories at the French Open on Sunday as Elina Svitolina continued her sparkling run after returning from a maternity break to reach the quarter-finals.
Djokovic, who is chasing a men's record 23rd Grand Slam to leapfrog Spaniard Rafa Nadal in the injured champion's absence, blazed past Peruvian marathon man Juan Pablo Varillas 6-3 6-2 6-2 in a lopsided last-eight clash.
A fired-up Elina Svitolina advanced to the quarter-finals for the fourth time with a 6-4 7-6 victory over Russian ninth seed Daria Kasatkina to stay on track for a maiden Grand Slam in her first major since the birth of her daughter Skai in October.Earlier, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova dug deep to return to the quarter-finals for the first time since her runner-up finish two years ago before fellow Russian Karen Khachanov also fought his way through on a bright Sunday.
Pavlyuchenkova, who has slipped to world number 333 after being forced to stop playing for five months last year, is the lowest-ranked French Open quarter-finalist in the Open Era.
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