Joao Fonseca surprises at Roland Garros: Defeats Djokovic in an epic match
Brazilian tennis player Joao Fonseca has pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the 2026 Roland Garros, defeating Serbian Novak Djokovic this Friday in a match that will be remembered by fans. Fonseca, at just 19 years old, became the youngest player to beat the legendary Serbian tennis player in a Grand Slam tournament. Fonseca, currently ranked number 30 in the world, managed to come back from two sets down to win with scores of 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 and 7-5, after almost five hours of intense battle on the Philippe Chatrier court. With this victory, the young Brazilian advances to the round of 16 of the French Open, where he will face the winner of the match between American Tommy Paul and Norwegian Casper Ruud. Djokovic’s defeat, at 39 years old and winner of 24 Grand Slam titles, also marked an unusual event in his career, as he had not been eliminated so early at Roland Garros since 2009. In addition, this is only the second time he has lost a Grand Slam match after winning the first two sets. The match took place in high temperatures, with a crowd mostly supporting the Brazilian tennis player. Thousands of fans, wearing Brazil shirts and waving green and yellow flags, constantly cheered for Fonseca. Djokovic dominated the first two sets, thanks to his experience and better reading of the game. However, physical wear began to show, while Fonseca raised his level, showing an aggressive forehand and greater confidence in each exchange. In the third set, Fonseca managed to break the Serbian’s serve, fueled by the energy of the crowd. In the fourth set, he saved two match points and managed to tie the match by winning 7-5. In the final set, the South American reacted after being down 1-3, taking advantage of Djokovic’s fatigue to break his serve in the eleventh game and seal the historic victory with his serve.Djokovic’s elimination, added to the departure of the Italian Jannik Sinner on Thursday, leaves the men’s draw of Roland Garros without active Grand Slam champions, thus guaranteeing that the tournament will crown a new winner.All the credit to Joao. He played better than me in the important moments of the fourth and fifth set.
Novak Djokovic
