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Moise Kouame, 17, etched himself into the tennis history books on Thursday. But then, his day got even better.Kouame became the first player born in 2009 or later to win an ATP Tour match when he beat Zachary Svajda 5-7 6-4 6-4 at the Miami Open.
And after becoming the youngest match winner ever at the ATP Masters 1000 event, Kouame got a special text message.
”I have a small secret… After the win, Novak [Djokovic] texted me,” Kouame told Tennis Channel. ”I’m so nervous, I don’t know what to answer. He texted me something like: ‘Big match today. Congrats. Hopefully you will go far.’
”Maybe [I should reply]: ‘Thank you, Novak. Thank you, my idol.’ No… I don’t know! Imagine having your idol DM you like this… It’s the coolest thing ever.”
Kouame has previously spoken about his admiration for Djokovic, picking out the 24-time Grand Slam winner as one of his idols growing up.
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”I hope, one day, they won’t be dreams, but a reality, and this is really what I am working for,” Kouame said.
Djokovic, 38, won his first Masters 1000 match in 2005, more than three years before Kouame was born.
Kouame is seen as one of the faces of the next generation of men’s tennis, with the French teenager enjoying a rapid rise to stardom.
He is ranked No. 385 in the world and is the youngest player inside the top 900.
Kouame made his ATP Tour debut earlier this season in Montpellier and already has two ITF World Tennis Tour titles to his name.
His victory over Svajda at the Miami Open means he surpasses the record set by Rafael Nadal in Hamburg in 2003 as the youngest to claim an ATP Masters 1000 win.
Having lost the first set against Svajda, Kouame trailed 3-4 in the second and was down 0-40 to his US opponent.
But he showed composure that belied his age, winning 14 of the next 16 points to take control and go to a deciding third set, which he would eventually win.
”It’s huge,” Kouame told Tennis Channel after the match. ”[My] first main draw at a Masters 1000 here in Miami – it’s such a cool place. I’m really happy to win that match today, and hopefully I can win many more.
”It’s my first time, so I didn’t expect all of this, but here I am. I need to get used to it pretty fast. It brings me a lot of confidence. It shows me that I’m on the right path. I just need to keep working.”
Kouame will face No. 21 seed Jiri Lehecka in the second round.
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