João Fonseca achieved an unprecedented feat in the history of Brazilian tennis, becoming the first athlete from the country to defeat Serbian Novak Djokovic in a Grand Slam. The victory occurred on May 29, at the hands of the 27-year-old player, who overcame the former number 1 in the ranking in a match that lasted 4 hours and 53 minutes. The Brazilian comeback happened in four sets, after the Serbian dominated the start of the match. João’s victory secured his spot in the round of 16 of Roland Garros, where he will now face the winner between Casper Ruud (Norway) and Tommy Paul (USA).
The match against Djokovic was the longest duel in João Fonseca’s career and also the longest in Djokovic’s career at Roland Garros. Another unprecedented feat is that this was the first time in 16 years that a Brazilian player advanced to this stage. The Serbian, who is the biggest champion of the Grand Slam, had won 11 of the 12 games in Roland Garros against opponents from Brazil. Djokovic’s loss is an important revenge for Brazilian tennis. João Fonseca became an important representative in the championship, and now seeks to continue this sequence, showing the world of sports his ability to overcome great players.
The match between João Fonseca and Djokovic was marked by a Brazilian comeback in the 3rd set, where the Rio de Janeiro native player took advantage of Djokovic’s blackout and opened three games to zero. The Serbian reacted, but João Fonseca remained firm, despite the games decided in the advantage, and won 6-3. The equilibrium between the tennis players remained in the following sets, but João Fonseca managed to impose his game and confirm the victory 7-5 in the last set. With the victory, Brazil now has another player in an advanced stage of the championship, who seeks to continue with the sequence and achieve great conquests. João Fonseca’s next match will be on Sunday (5/31), against the winner of the duel between Casper Ruud and Tommy Paul.
