Novak Djokovic battled through the Paris heat, winning the first two sets against Joao Fonseca 6-4, 6-4 in the third round of the French Open. But just when Djokovic was hoping to catch a breath during the changeover, his frustration boiled over as a cameraman got a little too close.

“Can you come more in my face? For God’s sake make some space,” the Serb said directly to the cameraman, loud enough for the moment to be caught on broadcast and quickly picked up.

The player has never been afraid to express himself, either on or off the court, and it was just a little irritation. By design, cameras at the French Open are close to the action, but Djokovic certainly felt the line had been crossed at this moment. 

Djokovic is not the first high-profile player to push back on cameras this year. During the Australian Open in January, Elina Svitolina defeated Coco Gauff in the quarter-final, after which Gauff repeatedly broke her racket in a tunnel corridor, believing she had found a camera-less spot. A broadcast camera captured the moment and made it viral. 

Gauff was visibly unhappy about it afterwards. “I tried to go somewhere where there were no cameras,” she said at her press conference. “Maybe some conversations can be had because I feel like at this tournament, the only private place we have is the locker room.”

The incident sparked a wider debate about player privacy at Grand Slams, eventually leading the ATX Open to introduce a camera-free rage room for players. It was an issue that Jessica Pegula, who weighed in, ‌put quite simply:

“You’re under a microscope all day. The only place you’re not filmed is the locker room or the bathroom.” This debate has definitely not been swept under the rug, and Djokovic’s moment at Roland Garros suggests it is only a matter of time before it appears at the Slams more officially.

The outburst did not seem to affect him in the short term. He had been all over the first two, accumulating 49 winners to Fonseca’s 36, and was attacking the net all match long, overcoming 23 points to the latter’s 12. The Brazilian, however, hit back in the third, taking it 6-3 to keep the match alive. 

The fourth set was tied at 5-5 at the time of writing, and the match was still tight. Now, at 39, Djokovic remains a constant presence on the major stages and his performance in the first two sets against one of the most explosive young players in the world had been a testament to that. With Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz both out of the draw, he has huge chance to grab his 25th Grand Slam. Whether he closes it out or whether Fonseca forces a fifth will go a long way in shaping the story of this Roland Garros fortnight.

Fonseca stuns Djokovic 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 7-5 in four-hour, 53-minute epic

Everything seemed to be going Djokovic’s way on a comfortable Friday afternoon at Roland Garros 2026 until it didn’t. Fonseca, who had already come back from two sets down against Dino Prizmic two days earlier, did it again. He picked up the third set 6-3 and completely turned the tide. 

Djokovic was two points from the match in the fourth set, on Fonseca’s serve at 5-4. The teen held both times. The Serb had carved out a 3-1 lead in the fifth, and it looked like his experience would carry him through. But it did not. Fonseca came back strong, going on to win six of the last eight games and finishing with 3 consecutive aces, before falling back in his chair, unable to believe what had happened. 

As the game progressed, the Paris heat seemed to be taking a toll on Djokovic’s physique, and he did not look his best, repeatedly shaking his arm ‌and battling the long rallies as Fonseca kept pounding away. The 39-year-old did not shy away from what had happened. 

“While I had good energy and fuel, and while I was relatively fresh, everything was fine,” he said after the match. “Unfortunately, it drains you, and he finally caught momentum with the break in the third, took the set, and the crowd on his side woke up, so things got a bit complicated. A lot of energy was spent, and in some moments of the fourth and fifth it was really a lottery.”

On the chances he had, he was equally candid. “I had two chances at four-three and five-four. On the fourth he played two unbelievable points, and that was it. There is nothing to say except to congratulate him on his courage, on his exceptional play, on the high quality when it was needed,” Djokovic stated. 

It was the longest match the 24-time Grand Slam champion has ever played at Roland Garros, and the longest of Fonseca’s young career. Before Friday, Djokovic had won 289 of the 290 Grand Slam matches in which he had taken a two-set lead. The Brazilian became only the second player ever to overturn that deficit against him at a major. Fonseca has entered the fourth round at a major for the first time.

Djokovic left Court Philippe-Chatrier to a huge ovation amid questions over whether this was his final Roland Garros appearance. With Sinner already gone, knocked out by Juan Manuel Cerundolo the previous day, and Alcaraz also out of the draw, the path to a 25th Grand Slam title that had looked so open for Djokovic this fortnight has now closed. The tournament moves on without him, and for Fonseca, at just 19, it is only just beginning.

The young lad will be facing either two-time French Open finalist Casper Ruud or Tommy Paul in the round of 16 on Sunday.