Alexander Zverev believes he now has the toughest draw in the French Open, but is prepared to face off against the "best in the world".
The German reached the quarter-finals after his fourth-round opponent, Tallon Griekspoor, retired with an abdominal injury midway through the second set on Monday.
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Zverev had been leading 6-4 3-0 at the time and will now face Novak Djokovic in the last eight as he continues his bid to win a maiden grand slam title.
Going into the French Open, Zverev held a 74.8% win ratio at grand slams (107-36 record), the best win percentage of any man not to win a major title in the Open Era (minimum 10 matches played).
He lost to Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open final in January and was beaten in the Roland-Garros showpiece by Carlos Alcaraz in 2024. In the three previous years, he had bowed out in the semi-finals of the French Open.
With Sinner a potential opponent should he reach the semi-finals, Zverev acknowledged he now has a difficult test ahead of him.
"For me, Carlos is the favourite. I have said that before," Zverev said.
"Then I would say the next three in line are Jannik, myself, and Novak, right? I still believe that.
"I still believe, on tennis and on experience, Novak is up there with us, no question about that at all. So, yeah, I think from now on, I have the toughest draw in the tournament.
"I'm looking forward to the battles ahead, and I'm looking forward to playing the best in the world."
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Zverev has won five of his previous 13 career matches against Djokovic, and faced him in the semi-final in Melbourne earlier this year, too.
The 28-year-old went through in that meeting after Djokovic retired injured, but Zverev is looking forward to adding another chapter to their rivalry.
"We have great history in our rivalry, I would say, but I'm looking forward to the match, and it's always a privilege to be on court with him," added Zverev.
"Of course, playing Novak is always an honour."
