Novak Djokovic and Joao Fonseca are locked in a spectacular battle at the French Open. A massive upset unfolds. The door is swinging wider and wider for Alexander Zverev.
The record-holding Grand Slam champion is out! Novak Djokovic lost in the third round of the French Open after an epic battle against 19-year-old Brazilian Joao Fonseca.
The 24-time major champion was defeated by the rising star in a spectacular duel, 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, and 5-7. Fonseca finally converted his first match point and could hardly believe his luck afterward.
Fonseca can hardly believe it
In an on-court interview, Fonseca was asked how he managed to even believe he could win this match. “I didn’t really. I just played. I just enjoyed being on the court. What a pleasure that was,” said Fonseca, addressing Djokovic: “What an idol we have.”
The overjoyed winner then wished his mother a happy birthday and thanked the fans for their support.
French Open: Djokovic’s spell broken
In Fonseca’s final service game, Djokovic even had another break point. But with the score at 30-40, the Brazilian served three aces in a row (!) and not only fended off the break point but also won the match.
The Serb struggled with physical discomfort for long stretches of the match, leaning forward exhausted on several occasions. Amid thunderous applause, Djokovic finally left the court as a gracious loser.
“Considering all the circumstances, I have to say that I played at a really good level. Of course, I’m disappointed with the result; I ran out of energy,” said Djokovic: “He went all out in the decisive moments and played with extreme speed. All you can say is: well done.”
Djokovic missed out on his 20th appearance in the round of 16 in Paris and lost in the third round of the clay-court tournament for the first time since 2009. Seventeen years ago, he had to bow out to Philipp Kohlschreiber.
Stomach issues and the brutal heat in Paris also seemed to severely affect the 39-year-old Djokovic. Top favorite Jannik Sinner had already been eliminated on Thursday after leading 2-0 in sets and suffering from heat-related issues.
This year’s French Open is making history: It is the first time in the Open Era that a former Grand Slam champion has failed to reach at least the round of 16 in the men’s singles at a Grand Slam tournament.
This had only happened once before to Djokovic at the Grand Slam level
Djokovic had previously lost only one of 461 Grand Slam matches after leading 2-0 in sets: in 2010 against Austria’s Jürgen Melzer in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros (6-3, 6-2, 2-6, 6-7, 4-6). On Friday, Fonseca also achieved this extremely rare feat.
In his first appearance in the round of 16 at a major, Fonseca will face Casper Ruud (Norway). In the semifinals, the youngster could then face Alexander Zverev. Germany’s number one is set to take on local hero Quentin Halys this evening.
Zverev is still chasing his first Grand Slam title. Following the withdrawal of Carlos Alcaraz and the exits of Sinner and Djokovic, the German is considered the clear favorite.
