Fabio Fognini might be on his swan song season on the Tour; however, he didn’t show any signs of decline in his first match against Carlos Alcaraz in Wimbledon. Most at the All-England Club would have expected the match to be over in less than two hours with reigning champion Alcaraz dominating the emotional Fognini.
However, all–including Alcaraz–were surprised to see the match go on for more than four and half hours and filled with a lot more than just a regular pushover. Fognini, throughout his career, had a good habit of challenging the best–and in his last season, that habit was still very much visible.
Fognini was a threat to some of the best
Fognini played most of his tennis in the “Big 4” era, that included Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray. The four dominant forces didn’t let many breathe easy on court. However, impressively, the Italian snatched some memorable wins from these legends as well.
A rare feat in tennis, Fognini with his tenacity managed to beat Rafael Nadal thrice on clay in his career. After his 2019 win over Nadal at Monte Carlo, Fognini went on to win the event, making it his first ever Masters 1000 crown. His only other win against Nadal apart from his clay heroics was at the 2015 US Open. He bounced back from two sets down to stun the Spaniard and make his way to the fourth round, his best result at the event.
Fognini’s duels with Murray have also been rather entertaining. The Italian beat the Brit in the Davis Cup 2014 quarterfinals in a very crucial must-win match. He then followed it with an even more remarkable win at the Rome Masters in 2017, when he beat the Brit, who was World #1 at the time. That was his only win against a #1 player in the world.
Apart from these prominent results against members of the Big 4, Fognini also brought up wins against the likes of Dominic Thiem, Juan Martin Del Potro, and Alexander Zverev. In his 17 wins over Top 10 players, Fognini showed that he wasn’t a mere pushover, but a proper competitor. He almost stunned the second seed Alcaraz despite being 38 and tired after a draining career.
The Italian made it to a career high #9 in 2019 when he won the Monte Carlo Masters. He also holds a remarkable 24-16 fifth set record, showing that more often than not he has prevailed successfully in the decider through sheer grit. His antics on the court will be missed, and fans should cherish every bit of tennis they see the Italian play this year.
Main Photo Credit: Taya Gray/The Desert Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK
