"Djokovic told me that I have a bright future: it means everything to me" | Interview with Jaime Faria

Carlos Navarro | 26 Feb 2026 | 21.15

Jaime Faria sits down with Carlos 'Magic' to tell his story. It's worth it.

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Jaime Faria (Lisbon, August 6, 2003) is as bold on the court as he is humble and calm off it. He has the audacity of a teenager eager to make his mark on the circuit, yet the maturity of someone who confesses that his biggest dream is to have children and start a family. A different kind of guy, the son of an artist (his father was an Art History professor and worked in museums: some works, including drawings by young Jaime, were exhibited in various places) who can switch effortlessly from talking about his future in tennis to captivating you in a conversation about his beloved Sporting de Portugal.

The volcano that he is on the court has already shown signs of erupting. Not only this year, where he has defended what he achieved in 2025... and how (reaching the second round in Australia, where he took a set from Rublev; quarterfinals at the ATP Rio Open, where as a Lucky Loser he defeated names like Seba Báez): his big explosion came last year when he surprised the world by taking a set from and challenging Novak Djokovic at the Rod Laver Arena.

That performance, his debut in a Grand Slam main draw, made a positive impression on the Serbian. In a press conference, Nole praised the courage and the style of Portuguese tennis, something he also mentioned in an on-court exchange after the match, an encounter that the Portuguese will never forget. Leading up to that moment, Jaime had a very challenging journey, from his early days, looking up to Joao Sousa and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, to the months when he broke into the top 150, on the brink of entering the big leagues where he struggled to grasp his new reality.

At 22 years old, Jaime Faria still has a lot to say, and Puntodebreak sat down with him several months ago, during the 2025 Seville Cup, to delve deep into his story and share his profile with the world. Portugal's second racket continues to take giant steps... and it's time for the world to get to know him. These are just some excerpts from a conversation that you can listen to and watch (with extensive editing) in full on our YouTube channel.

Jaime Faria delved deep into the challenges of facing Novak Djokovic, picked a member of the Big Three, and shared his story in depth

How he fell in love with tennis and who his role models were

"When I was young, I lived in the south of Portugal, in the Algarve. There was an exhibition tournament with tennis legends: Wilander, Ivanisevic, McEnroe... when I was seven, my parents took me there. On the first day, they left us in the kids' area. The second day, my brother and I told them we didn't want to be there, we wanted to watch the matches. It all started there. My role models were Joao Sousa and, outside of Portugal, Tsonga. I loved their presence on the court, it was easy to like them: the way they played, their personality... they faced the best and could do anything."