Federer from Idol to rival

Having toppled 20-times Grand Slam champion Roger Federer in the fourth round of the Australian Open on Sunday, an overwhelmed Stefanos Tsitsipas felt thrilled to have turned his idol into a "rival".

The shaggy-haired 20-year-old's 6-7(11) 7-6(3) 7-5 7-6(5) triumph at Rod Laver Arena made him the first Greek to reach the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam while condemning Federer to his earliest exit from Melbourne Park in four years.

John McEnroe told the terraces they had just witnessed "a changing of the guard", and the reigning NextGen ATP champion also felt the weight of the moment after sealing match point in front of a heaving crowd.

"It was a very emotional moment. It was something -- a beginning of something really big. I felt joy. I felt happiness. I felt a huge relief going out of my shoulders," Tsitsipas told reporters.

"Yeah, sure. He's in front of the mic (microphone) a lot" 

"He's always going to say stuff. I love John. I've heard that story the last 10 years. From that standpoint, nothing new there."- Federer on John McEnroe's suggestion that a 'changing of the guard' was taking place 

"That moment is definitely something that I will never, ever, ever forget. This match point is going to stay, I'm pretty much sure, forever, for the rest of my life.

"I just managed to close that match and stay strong, beat my idol. My idol today became pretty much my rival."

Melbourne's large Greek community came out in force at Melbourne Park and belted out songs of support at the Grand Slam Garden adjacent to the stadium. Tsitsipas will hope to reward their support by blazing a trail to the semi-finals and maybe beyond if he can beat Spain's 22nd seed Roberto Bautista Agut in his next match. It will be a match of two maiden Grand Slam quarter-finalists and Tsitsipas was confident he could progress, so long as he kept humble.

"You need something extra to beat those players. I did show that today," he said. "But if I manage to keep the same levels of concentration like I did today, same patience, same mental toughness, willing to fight, I'm pretty sure it's going to go pretty well.

"But I do have, again, as I said, to stay humble and concentrated on the goals I've set this year. I really want it badly. I really want to proceed further in the tournament, yeah, to make myself happy and the people that are cheering for me happy."

Showing incredible composure for a 20-year-old playing in just his second Grand Slam fourth round, Tsitsipas saved all 12 break points he gave up to the Swiss and was clinical in the riveting final tiebreak. "It was actually very mental, I would say," he said.

"I could have cracked at any moment but I didn't because I really wanted it bad. I showed it on the court. Obviously and for sure that mental toughness helped a lot."

A changing of the guard

If having his Australian Open title defence ended early was not painful enough for Roger Federer on Sunday, there was the additional sting of being beaten by a tyro with plenty of similarities to his younger, fearless self.

Sporting a one-handed backhand and a mop of long hair, Stefanos Tsitsipas cared little for reputation or records as he toppled the 37-year-old Swiss master 6-7(11) 7-6(3) 7-5 7-6(5) at a packed Rod Laver Arena.

There was no being overawed by the occasion or freezing in the clutch points, nor any of the failings that have tripped up so many of the young pretenders who have shared a court with the 20-times Grand Slam champion.

There was only composure and brilliance from the 20-year-old Tsitsipas who became Greece's first Grand Slam quarter-finalist and seems destined for bigger prizes in the near future.

In short, he was not unlike the Federer of the early 2000s who crashed through the game's titans with fearless abandon and condemned a 35-year-old Andre Agassi to defeat in the 2005 U.S. Open final.

After exiting Melbourne Park without a quarter-final for only the second time in the last 18 years, the Swiss shrugged off a suggestion from John McEnroe that the Rod Laver Arena crowd had just witnessed a "changing of the guard".

"Yeah, sure. He's in front of the mic (microphone) a lot," a downcast Federer told reporters.

"He's always going to say stuff. I love John. I've heard that story the last 10 years. From that standpoint, nothing new there."

Federer will note ruefully, however, that he has now been upset in the fourth round at two Grand Slams in succession, having been tipped out of the U.S. Open by unseeded Australian John Millman. He said, however, that he would play the French Open for the first time since 2015.

“I’m in a phase where I want to enjoy myself. I also had the feeling it was not necessary to have a long break. I’m going to play Roland Garros,” Federer told a news conference.

Against Tsitsipas, his legs seemed heavy and his groundstrokes lacked punch towards the end of a match in which both players scrambled hard for three hours and 45 minutes. For Federer, the most galling part was his lack of a clinical edge. He let all 12 break points he grabbed from the Greek go unconverted and blew four set points that would have given him a two-set lead.

"It definitely didn't go the way I was hoping on the breakpoints," he said. "Nevertheless, it's very frustrating.

"I lost to a better player who was playing very well tonight. Hung in there, gave himself chances at some point, stayed calm.

"It's not always easy, especially for younger guys."