Grigor Dimitrov knows all about the pressures of coming up onto the ATP Tour from a young age like Joao Fonseca.
Fonseca caught the attention of Carlos Alcaraz after winning his maiden ATP title at the Argentina Open last month.
There was already a lot of discussion surrounding the Brazilian teenager when he won the ATP Next Gen Finals last year, before Fonseca beat Andrey Rublev to get both his first Grand Slam main draw and top 10 win at the Australian Open.
With these impressive results on show for the world to see, Fonseca has been predicted to achieve big things in 2025 and beyond.
Grigor Dimitrov suggests that expectations on Joao Fonseca could damage him
Fonseca is regularly compared to Gustavo Kuerten, with the 18-year-old trying to separate himself from his compatriot, who was world number one and won three Grand Slam titles.
Ahead of the ATP/WTA 1000 Miami Open, Lacoste hosted a dinner featuring some of their players including Juan Martin del Potro, Daniil Medvedev, Dimitrov and the aforementioned Kuerten.
During this dinner they spoke about a number of topics, including the pressure that is currently being put on Fonseca.
After Del Potro began this conversation, Kuerten suggested that fans are already expecting Fonseca to be better than him.
This is when Dimitrov spoke about the time in his career when he dealt with something similar by being compared to Roger Federer, admitting that it could be detrimental to Fonseca’s career.
“Fonseca is having a lot of pressure now, comparing to you all the time,” said former US Open champion Del Potro.
Kuerten responded, “He is compared to [be] better than me!”
Followed up by Dimitrov, “That’s the thing, at 17 they were comparing me to Roger. The Baby Fed thing! To nowadays. But this is one of the worst things you can do to a kid. Luckily I have a thick skin and everything. Of course, it helped me but it also can damage you.”
Why did Grigor Dimitrov not like Roger Federer comparisons?
Dimitrov made real waves on the ATP Tour as a young star, and due to the elegant nature of his one-handed backhand was given the nickname ‘Baby Fed’.
These comparisons were amplified even further at Wimbledon in 2014 when Dimitrov beat Andy Murray, who was the defending champion, to reach the semi-finals.
Ten years on from that breakthrough run, Dimitrov spoke to the Athletic last year about why he was actually not so keen on the ‘Baby Fed’ nickname.
“Honestly, I found it funny at the beginning, and then I started…not hating it but I didn’t like it because there was no point to it,” said Dimitrov. “We’re so different and we have some resemblance but we’re not really the same people and I think that was so unnecessary.
“One wish I would have for a young kid is not to be compared to someone. I think it was probably one of the worst things I had to deal with in my career.
“I never liked it and it never brought me any good. Of course, I’m flattered but I always wanted to be my own person.”
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
