Joao Fonseca wishes he could have played for his idol Roger Federer when he opened that big lead in the 2019 Wimbledon final as the rising Brazilian star believes he would have aced Novak Djokovic and seal the deal.
If you remember well, the Swiss tennis icon broke the Serb in the fifth set of their final at The Championships and also went 40/15 up on his serve in the following game. But just when it seemed that the final was over and that the Swiss would win his ninth Wimbledon title, he failed to capitalize on his consecutive championship points and got broken back.
Ultimately, Djokovic went on to complete a 7-6 (5) 1-6 7-6 (4) 4-6 13-12 (3) win.
Fonseca, who stands at 185cm (6ft 1in tall) and is preparing for his Next Gen ATP Finals debut, appeared in 14 ATP-level matches this season. In those 14 matches, he fired 39 aces but also had 25 double faults.
Fonseca asked to name the match he watched and wishes he could have played
“The one in 2019, when Roger had match point against Djokovic at Wimbledon. I wish I would be Roger, so I could make an ace at 40/15. I want to change history,” the 18-year-old replied during his conversation with the ATP.
Joao Fonseca© Joao Fonseca/Instagram – Fair Use
Last year, Djokovic admitted in one of his interviews that Federer was “the better player” that day but he simply found a way to win.
Meanwhile, Fonseca – who is ranked at No. 145 in the world and won his first Challenger title in Lexington this year – revealed in a recent interview with Tennis World Italy that the Swiss was his “idol.”
“As a child I always watched a lot of Roger Federer matches. He was the player I enjoyed watching the most, because he always made tennis look easy. He is an idol for me,” the Brazilian shared in September.
Tennis World USA