Bengaluru, May 30: Clay king Rafael Nadal set up a blockbuster French Open 2022 quarterfinal against ATP world No.1 Novak Djokovic on Sunday when he defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime in a five-set fourth round epic.

Nadal, the 13-time champion at Roland Garros and holder of a record 21 Grand Slam titles, triumphed over the Canadian 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in a match which lasted four hours and 21 minutes.

It was only the third time in his 17-year, 111-match career in Paris that Nadal had been stretched to five sets.

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Nadal and Djokovic will meet for the 10th time at Roland Garros and 59th overall in a rivalry stretching back to 2006.

"We know each other well, we have a lot of history. The only thing I can say is that I'll be focussed, try my best and fight until the end," Nadal said in an on-court interview about renewing his rivalry with the defending champion on Tuesday.

Nadal hailed Auger-Aliassime who has been working with his uncle and former coach Toni since April last year.

"Felix is a great player, one of the best in the world. He's very young with a lot of power and great mobility," said the 35-year-old Spaniard.

"He was a very tough opponent for me, he is doing a lot of things well and has improved every year.

"He's a great guy and a good colleague on the tour.

Djokovic on song

Earlier, Djokovic said previous failures at the French Open add "more significance" to his quest for Roland Garros glory.

Djokovic has not dropped a set in each of his last nine matches, dating back to his Internazionali d'Italia win, after cruising to a 6-1 6-3 6-3 victory over Diego Schwartzman on Sunday.

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The world No.1 has reached a record 16 quarterfinals at the Paris major, while only Roger Federer (58) has reached the last eight at Grand Slams more times than Djokovic (51).

But Djokovic has not always enjoyed success in the French capital, losing three finals against Rafael Nadal (twice in 2012 and 2014) and Stan Wawrinka in 2015 before defeating Andy Murray the next year.

The Serbian added a second French Open crown to his trophy haul in 2021 by edging out Stefanos Tsitsipas.

As Djokovic looks to defend his title, the 35-year-old explained he has an added incentive given his previous struggles in the tournament.

"It took me years and years to win the title here," he told reporters. "Of course I had some big heartbreaks on the court here, many finals lost and semi-finals, thrilling marathon matches, mostly against Rafa prior to 2016.

"It was very special, very emotional to clinch that title in 2016. It was a huge relief more than anything.

"So in the years to come, I was still continuing to play consistently well here then luckily got another title last year, somehow winning a title here is always probably the hardest of any slam for me.

"Last year the second week that I had here was just probably the toughest four matches, toughest seven days I had to win any slam in my career. So it gives it a little bit more of a significance, so to say," he added.

(With inputs from Agencies)