"They sent their congratulations": Henry Bernet confirms receiving call from Roger Federer and family after Australian Open boys title

Switzerland’s Henry Bernet has revealed that he received a congratulatory email from the family of former world number one Roger Federer after his triumph in the Australian Open. The 18-year-old, who has been regarded as the next ‘Roger Federer’, defeated Benjamin Willwerth in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-4 to lift the Australian Open boys title.

In a post that was shared on the social media platform X — previously known as Twitter — by tennis journalist Simon Cambers, it was revealed that the youngster received a call from the family of one of the greatest players in the history of men’s tennis after his triumph in Melbourne. "I received a lot of congratulations. Among them was a friendly email from the Federer family, from Roger and his parents Lynette and Robert, which made me very happy. They sent their congratulations and wished me much success in my future endeavours,” said Bernet, as per the report.

Even before lifting the Australian Open boys title, the youngster was often compared with Federer because of numerous reasons. Both are Basel-born and practised at the same club under the name Old Boys. Talking after lifting the title in Melbourne on his 18th birthday, Bernet stated that he is focused on creating his ‘own’ journey despite comparison with the 20-time Grand Slam winner.

“As I said, I'm just trying to develop myself, yeah, kind of make my own journey,” he said back then. “But obviously there's always going to be some comparisons. That's not a problem for me. It's a motivation, too. Yeah, maybe I just try to focus on my own journey.”