Novak Djokovic roars with relief after coming through his five-set quarterfinal against French Open crowd favorite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at Roland Garros.
(CNN) -- World No. 1 Novak Djokovic battled back from the brink of defeat at the French Open on Tuesday to rescue his hopes of becoming the first man in 43 years to hold all four grand slam titles.
The Serbian saved four match-points before finally overcoming home favorite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals.
Djokovic, who has never reached the final at Roland Garros, triumphed 6-1 5-7 5-7 7-6 (8-6) 6-1 against the fifth seed in a scintillating match lasting just over four hours.
The 25-year-old set up a rematch with 16-time grand slam champion Roger Federer, who beat Djokovic in the Paris semifinals last year to end his 43-match winning run.
"He was the better player for most of the match and I was fortunate to come back from four match-points down. It was an incredible match," said Djokovic, who won the first and fifth sets in a combined time of just 53 minutes.
Rafael Nadal, right, was apologetic after winning 17 games in a row in his straight-sets destruction of good friend Juan Monaco in the fourth round of the French Open.
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The hopes of a nation had rested on Tsonga, playing in the quarterfinals of his home event for the first time, but France's wait for a first male champion since Yannick Noah in 1983 must continue.
Instead, Djokovic will have a day's rest before continuing his bid to match Australia's Rod Laver, who twice won all four grand slams in a calendar year -- as an amateur in 1962 and then as a professional at the start of the Open era in 1969.
"I did what I said I would and gave everything. I came close and I would have loved to have won," said Tsonga, who had vowed before the match to "fight like a lion."
"It's a shame because I was pretty close, but at the end I had no energy left. Now I will have to close this chapter," the 27-year-old added.
Federer reached the last four at a major for a record-equaling 31st time as he came from two sets down to end the hopes of injury-hampered Juan Martin Del Potro.
The Swiss third seed won 3-6 6-7 (4-7) 6-2 6-0 6-3 in a virtual repeat of their 2009 semifinal, when Federer went on to claim the Roland Garros crown for the first and only time in his illustrious career.
Del Potro avenged that defeat by beating Federer in the 2009 U.S. Open final for his only major success, but this time the Argentine ninth seed could not maintain his ferocious opening momentum.
"I knew Juan Martin's knee was bothering him and was trying to finish the rallies quickly," Federer said. "I knew it would be a big fight today."
The other two quarterfinals will be played on Wednesday, when world No. 2 Rafael Nadal continues his bid for a record seventh title as he takes on fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro, the 12th seed.
Britain's world No. 4 Andy Murray faces a big test of his hopes of winning his first grand slam as he lines up against sixth seed David Ferrer, who has won all of their three clay clashes.
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The world No. 1 won the first set in just 21 minutes, but then needed to save four match-points in the fourth.
He won that in a tie-break and then romped through the decider to keep alive his hopes of winning the tournament for the first time and holding all four grand slam titles -- which has not been done since 1969.
It was a bitter disappointment for Tsonga, who was playing in the last eight of his home event for the first time and was seeking to become France's first champion since 1983.
Djokovic will next play Roger Federer in a rematch of last year's semifinal, which the 16-time grand slam champion won to end the Serbian's 43-match winning streak.
Federer progressed to the last four after repeating his 2009 semifinal win over Juan Martin Del Potro, who won the first two sets this time but was hampered by his heavily-strapped knee.
Nadal, seeking a record seventh title, will face 12th seed Nicolas Almagro in the quarterfinals. His fellow Spaniard knocked out Serbias's world No. 8 Janko Tipsarevic.
If he wins that, Nadal could take on Andy Murray in the semifinals. The world No. 4 reached the last eight after coming from behind to beat France's Richard Gasquet.
Murray must next beat in-form Spanish sixth seed David Ferrer, who has won all three of their clay encounters.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is France's only remaining title hope, with the fifth seed to face world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in his first quarterfinal appearance at Roland Garros.
Argentina's Juan Martin Del Potro earned a rematch against third seed Roger Federer, who beat him in the 2009 semifinals before winning the Paris crown for the first time.
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