Novak Djokovic recalls Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer's 'Battle of Surfaces' after facing windy conditions during French Open 2R win

Novak Djokovic made a hilarious reference to Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal's famous 'Battle of Surfaces' after dealing with windy conditions on Day 4 of the 2023 French Open.

Djokovic registered a 7-6(2), 6-0, 6-3 win over Marton Fucsovics on Wednesday to advance to the third round in Paris. In the post-match press conference, the Serb highlighted the challenging windy conditions he encountered.

He claimed that the conditions reminded him of the 'Battle of Surfaces' exhibition match between Federer and Nadal. That match, held on May 2, 2007, saw the two legends compete on a court split over two surfaces - with one side being clay and the other grass.

Djokovic even likened himself to 'Bambi on ice' when describing how he handled the windy and slippery court conditions.

"The wind was blowing extremely hard from one end. I actually thought of [Rafael] Nadal and [Roger] Federer's exhibition match in Spain when they played half of the court grass, half clay. That was how I felt today. Like 'Bambi on ice' on one end," he said.

Djokovic further said the wind did not die down even after sunset, which was highly unusual.

"It's quite windy these days but normally once the sun comes down the intensity of the wind also comes down but it wasn't the case tonight. It's tough for the timing and to find a right distance to the ball," he said.

"We can talk about so many different conditions but when we talk about the conditions the wind is the worst. When the wind is swirling around it's bad on any surface but when the clay is flying around, getting in your mouth and in your eyes and ears it's so difficult," he added.

Novak Djokovic set to take on Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in French Open 3R

Novak Djokovic through to the third round of the 2023 French Open

Novak Djokovic will continue the quest for a third French Open title when he takes on Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the third round on Friday, June 2. Davidovich Fokina defeated Frenchman Luca Van Assche 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(6) to book his spot against the Serb.

Djokovic leads 2-1 in his head-to-head against the Spaniard. He won their two meetings in 2021, at the Italian Open in Rome and the Tokyo Olympics. However, it was Davidovich Fokina who emerged victorious in their most recent meeting, at the 2022 Monte-Carlo Masters. He beat Djokovic 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-1 to oust the Serb from the claycourt event in the second round.