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24 ITFWORLD SUMMER 2017 JUNIOR GRAND SLAMS A SUCCESSOR TO ORANTES R oger Federer was not the only player of the male persuasion to win a Wimbledon title without the loss of a set this year. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, an 18-year- old Spaniard with a Swedish father and Russian mother, glided through Wimbledon, winning the boys singles title. In the all-unseeded final, he turned back Axel Geller of Argentina 76(2) 63 to win his first Grand Slam title, sealing the deal with a winning drop shot. Davidovich Fokina, who defeated second seed Wu Yibing in the quarterfinals, played the final with a serious goal in mind. "I was thinking, 'Okay, I want to win this,'" he said. "I want to show the people who I am, that I want to play tennis, professional tennis. I want to show them what I want to do with my life." The Wimbledon victory came with the historic component of Davidovich Fokina being the first Spanish boy in 50 years to win at the All England Club. Manuel Orantes was the last in 1967, and eight years later he went on to win the US Open. "In Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, (everyone was saying) you make history, you make history," Davidovich Fokina said. "Now I'm very happy to be the second junior champion of Wimbledon. Like, I'm in shock. I'm not thinking about that I win. I don't have time to realise." Davidovich Fokina, whose father taught him tennis as a two-year-old on the beaches at home in Malaga, used to consider Federer his favourite player. So it seemed appropriate that Federer won his 19th Grand Slam title nearly simultaneously to Davidovich Fokina winning his first Grand Slam junior crown on a Sunday afternoon. Lately, however, the Spaniard's had a change of heart, preferring a player with a style more similar to his own. "I cry with Roger when he won a Grand Slam," he said. "Now more (it) is (Novak) Djokovic. I look more Djokovic, his game. But I think I start with Federer pushing me to play tennis." WIMBLEDON J UN I O R SL A M SP O T L I GH T J U N I O R SL A M S P O T L I G H T J UN I O R SL A M S P O T L I GH T