ATP Tour

Davidovich Fokina won't let heartbreak hold him back: 'I want more'

Last week’s Washington final will live in Alejandro Davidovich Fokina’s memory forever. The Spaniard had three championship points in the final of the ATP 500 event against Alex de Minaur, but was unable to convert one and lift his first ATP Tour trophy.

There was a memorable scene after the match, when an emotional Davidovich Fokina sat in his chair — understandably devastated by the result — while De Minaur comforted him. That clip quickly went viral on social media, but what was missed was that the Spaniard had enjoyed another deep run and cracked the Top 20 in the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time at No. 19.

“I’m happy but I’m not thinking about Top 20,” Davidovich Fokina told ATPTour.com. "It wasn’t the first goal from the beginning. But now that I’m in the Top 20, obviously I’m happy. But I want more and I want to go for more.”

Davidovich Fokina fell as low World No. 68 this January, but he believes that he began moving in the right direction earlier last year when he made big changes to his team, including a split with Jorge Aguirre, whom he began working with in 2011. For more than a decade, they shared a successful partnership, but it was time to begin a new chapter. Taking that ownership of his career has proven beneficial, according to 'Foki'.

“I think it gave me a lot of confidence for myself to play on court,” Davidovich Fokina said.

The 2025 season has been a consistent one for the surging Spaniard. After advancing to the fourth round at the Australian Open, he made back-to-back finals in Delray Beach and Acapulco, and has not looked back. A key has been keeping his level even and enjoying his time on court.

“To be consistent, to be just happy, enjoying. I know the level I can create on court and I think now the people can see that I am [playing] with confidence, power,” Davidovich Fokina said. “They [will look at me and think], ‘He is on fire, he is running every ball. He doesn’t do mistakes'. At the end that creates the opponent to think.”

Davidovich Fokina pointed to players like Daniil Medvedev, Tommy Paul and his Washington final opponent, De Minaur, as competitors who make life very difficult for their opponents. The Spaniard likes the idea of becoming a player like that.

“These are guys who to beat them you need to kill them three times to win the match point,” Davidovich Fokina said. “In the end those kinds of players are so tough to play. Obviously they are Top 10, but I think they are not easy. I will not say it’s easy to play against other Top 10s, but for me I think these ones are examples to play against other guys.”

The Spaniard understands that every week on the ATP Tour is difficult, so accomplishing that will not be easy. Davidovich Fokina is competing for an ATP Masters 1000 title this week in Toronto and will do the same in Cincinnati ahead of the season’s final major, the US Open. To continue climbing, the formula will be simple.

“Keep winning,” Davidovich Fokina said, cracking a smile. “Keep winning.”