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Pigeons and Paris frolics

David Ferrer and Gael Monfils enjoyed a moment after their five-set thriller © PA Photos

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French Open Day Nine Gallery

A day trip to Paris
Novak Djokovic unexpectedly found himself with plenty of spare time on his hands after quarter-final opponent Fabio Fognini pulled out with a torn thigh on Monday. For Fognini the news was devastating, having just reached his first grand slam quarter-final. But for Djokovic, Paris became his oyster with the rare prospect of four days off. "Walkover from Fognini. Bad luck for him, hope he recovers fast. Today I get to enjoy Paris in a different way," wrote the Serb. May we suggest to Novak that he treats Caroline Wozniacki to a spot of lunch?

Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth...
Not many people would complain at a free ticket into the French Open semis, but Fognini's withdrawal means Djokovic will not get the all-important "W" next to his name as he chases John McEnroe's 42-match winning streak. At 41 matches unbeaten, Djokovic is one match away from equalling the record, but to move clear he will now have to win the title at Roland Garros.

Look who's waiting
Rafael Nadal wasted little time in booking his place in the quarter-finals, but next up is his old foe Robin Soderling. There is no love lost between the pair, with their rivalry extending back to 2007, when they went the distance at Wimbledon. Soderling is the only man to have ever beaten Nadal at Roland Garros, although the Spaniard has his revenge in last year's final. Nadal has shown signs of weakness in his clay-court game that haven't been evident in previous years, and if anyone is to exploit the smallest hint of uncertainty, Soderling is the man to do it.

Hop, skip and a jump
The ATP Tour has thrown up its fair share of showboating in 2011. Roger Federer played a shot behind his back when running in the wrong direction, and Nadal perplexed Djokovic with a hot-dog lob winner. Ivan Ljubicic decided it was time to get in on the act at Roland Garros, picking break point in the first set against Nadal as his time to shine. Faced with the easiest of forehand winners, Ljubicic fired the ball into the air off the net cord, skipped in the air as if competing in the 110m hurdles and then regained his calm to kill a backhand volley for the point.

Pesky Pigeon
Andy Murray will have to return to the court on Tuesday after he was forced to battle back from two sets down against Viktor Troicki.The Serb was serving to level the score at 3-2 in the second set when he was distracted by a pigeon, hitting a wild shot as the bird flew past. The Serb was left ruing his luck when Murray's return hit the net cord and slithered over to clinch break point, but he could have no complaints about the winner, as Murray produced a superb forehand that saw the Serb rooted the spot.

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