Joao Fonseca Has Epic Reaction to Beating Novak Djokovic at Roland-Garros

No. 1-ranked men’s tennis player Jannik Sinner was one game away from sealing a second-round victory over No. 56 Juan Manuel Cerundolo at Roland-Garros on Thursday.

It all unraveled from there.

Sinner struggled with dizziness and lost to Cerundolo in five sets - snapping his 30-match winning streak and opening the door for a man not named Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz to win a Grand Slam major for the first time since 2023. Novak Djokovic, 39, won the 2023 U.S. Open and suddenly saw an opportunity to extend his all-time Grand Slam titles record to 25.

You could say Djokovic let that opportunity slip through his fingers, but the more accurate read is that Brazil‘s 19-year-old phenom Joao Fonseca snatched it from him in their third-round match on Friday. Fonseca defeated Djokovic in an incredible five-set thriller, becoming the first teenager to ever defeat Djokovic in a Grand Slam on three straight emphatic aces to seal it.

And on the court afterward, Fonseca had an incredibly relatable reaction.

When asked how he kept the belief that he could win the match, even after Djokovic won the first two sets, Fonseca said, “I actually didn’t. I just played. I just enjoy being on court. What a pleasure it was. What an idol we have, and it’s a pleasure just stepping on the court against him. It’s my first time stepping on the court against him, so just thanking him. Just very happy.”

With Sinner flaming out and Alcaraz recovering from a wrist injury, Djokovic likely will never have a better shot at claiming his 25th major. But sometimes the passing of the torch happens inconspicuously. Really, Djokovic has been in that process over the past two years, wrestling with Alcaraz and Father Time simultaneously in several epic matches.

This was Fonseca’s breakthrough moment, and it could become his coronation if he can win the trophy. He has a long way to go to formally enter the new-age pantheon of Alcaraz and Sinner, but he should be on the radar as an intriguing candidate to join to make their rivalry a trio for the next decade.

With Djokovic’s elimination, there will be a first-time Grand Slam champion at Roland-Garros this year. According to ESPN, it marks the first men’s major in the Open Era without at least one former major champion reaching the Round of 16.

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This story was originally published May 29, 2026 at 12:59 PM.