Sports · Tennis · 3 hrs ago
Davidovich Fokina says pressure after junior Wimbledon win nearly made him quit
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina nearly quit tennis after winning the Wimbledon boys’ title in 2017.
The Spanish player said the achievement brought more attention and pressure, and he struggled in matches on the lower-level Futures tour soon after.
At 18 and 19, he questioned whether he was good enough and said players needed sponsors to cover travel and team costs.
He has since won the Shanghai Masters, his first ATP Masters 1000 title and his third ATP title overall.
The victory lifted him to a career-high world ranking of 13, after a lower back injury kept him out for two months and forced him to miss the US Open.
He won two of three tournaments after returning, including an unbeaten run in China.
He will play in Basel and Paris as he finishes the 2026 season.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina says pressure after winning the 2017 Wimbledon boys’ title made him consider quitting tennis.
He said he struggled with attention and lost matches he expected to win in the months after the tournament.
The Spanish player said he lacked confidence and worried that his junior success might have been a one-off.
He continued playing and has since won titles in Chengdu and Shanghai in 2026.
After winning the Shanghai Masters, he reached a career-high ranking of world No. 13.
- Who
- Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, a Spanish tennis player.
- What
- He said pressure after his junior Wimbledon win made him consider quitting tennis.
- When
- After winning the Wimbledon boys’ title in 2017, when he was 18.
- Where
- Wimbledon; he later played Futures tournaments.
- Why
- He struggled with increased attention and lost matches he thought he should win. He also lacked confidence and worried his success might have been limited to one week.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Davidovich Fokina won the Wimbledon boys’ title.
He was playing Futures tournaments and losing matches he thought he should win, and said he considered quitting.
He reached a Futures final in San Sebastian.
He won his first Futures title in Quinta do Lago, Portugal.
He won titles in Chengdu and Shanghai and reached a career-high ranking of world No. 13.
- Junior title
- Wimbledon boys’ singles, 2017
- Age
- 18 when he struggled after the Wimbledon win
- Futures final
- San Sebastian, September 2017
- First Futures title
- Quinta do Lago, Portugal, March 2018
- Career-high ranking
- World No. 13 after the Shanghai Masters
- 2026 titles
- Chengdu and Shanghai
2 sources
What people are saying
There was a moment that I wanted to quit tennis because I couldn’t handle that pressure.
When I won the Wimbledon juniors I couldn’t handle a racket
You need some sponsors to pay the expenses for travel, for the team, for everything.