Henry Bernet reveals Roger Federer personally reached out to him following his Australian Open triumph to congratulate and wish him all the best going forward.
The rising Swiss tennis star, who turned 18 last Saturday, capped off his junior career by winning the 2025 Australian Open boys’ singles title.
En route to winning the title, Bernet beat No. 1 seed Jan Kumstat in the quarterfinal before overcoming Benjamin Willwerth in the final 6-3 6-4 for his maiden junior Slam.
And Federer – who won 20 Grand Slams during his illustrious career and is widely regarded as the greatest Swiss tennis player ever – was happy for the success of his younger compatriot.
“I received a lot of congratulations. Among them was a friendly email from the Federer family, from Roger and his parents Lynette and Robert, which made me very happy. They sent their congratulations and wished me much success in my future endeavors,” the 18-year-old told Swiss publication Blick.
” “I received a lot of congratulations. Among them was a friendly email from the Federer family, from Roger and his parents Lynette and Robert, which made me very happy. They sent their congratulations and wished me much success in my future endeavors”
Henry Bernet for Blick pic.twitter.com/mMo2K2arCh— Dinora♥RF 🐐 (@norinchi_df) January 29, 2025
Bernet on the Federer comparisons
By winning the Australian Open boys’ singles title, the promising Swiss joined Federer, Stan Wawrinka and Martina Hingis on the list of Swiss players who managed to land a Slam junior title.
To no one’s surprise, some already started comparing him to the former 20-time Grand Slam winner and wondering if he could be the next player from Switzerland to do big things.
However, Bernet made it clear he wasn’t interested in having those conversations as he noted that the former world No. 1 is in “another world.”
“It is an honor for me to see them interested in my game. It is a motivation for me,” Bernet said after his triumph at Melbourne Par
“I have been compared already with Roger, but it is like, ‘He is another world. He is playing at another level and I am very far away from it’. But it keeps me motivated.
“I mean, what Roger and Stan achieved for the country Switzerland is not normal and it’s just an inspiration for us young people.”
Tennis World USA