Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, World No. 23 and second best Spanish player after Alcaraz, lost in second round in Roland Garros, against Thiago Agustin Tirante in four sets. The 26-year-old fired his manager Félix Mantilla after reaching four finals in 2025 but not winning any, despite having several match points, but has been suddenly abandoned by his successor, Mariano Puerta.
Initial reports said that Davidovich Fokina fired Puerta in the middle of the tournament, between his first and second matches, as Puerta left Paris to Miami. But the Spaniard confirmed that it was Puerta who suddenly left, "without saying a word to anybody", and he used a WhatsApp text to explain to him why he left.
"He told me he was feeling unwell, that he was going back to the hotel. And he simply took a flight to Miami. He's an adult and can make his own decisions. I don't know if I'm going to reply to that message. But as a person, he let the whole team down", Davidovich Fokina said (via ClayTennis), denying having any arguments with the Argentinian coach (a former Roland Garros finalist who lost to Rafa Nadal in 2005). "I thought he was a good person, but after this I discovered he had done the same thing a couple of times before. It was my fault for hiring him".
Davidovich Fokina, the higher ranked player that still hasn't won a tournament, has a new coach, José Manuel Clavet.