The Brazilian won in the first round in the 500 in Rio de Janeiro against Arthur Fils, with a clear 6-0 6-4. At the ATP Finals he sparred with the champions, at home they compare him to Jannik. And he made a deal with the coach…
A star was born. A star is born in Rio de Janeiro: Joao Fonseca. One of those tennis players who seem destined for a successful career: expectations can only be high if your name ends up in phrases that include Sinner, Alcaraz, Federer. The Brazilian is the first born in 2006 (he will turn 18 in August) to win a match at ATP level: he did it in the 500 at home, against Arthur Fils, even giving a bagel (6-0 6-4 the score) to a another nascent tennis band, the French 2004 which seemed powerless against the competitive fury of the kid with the veteran’s bearing.
ROGER’S INVESTMENT
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You don’t end up in certain conversations by chance. Fonseca has been monitored by professionals for some time now. In November he was in Turin to act as a sparring partner for the eight best players of 2023 at the ATP Finals, as if to say: this is your dimension, start getting used to it, it’s only a matter of time. Federer took a long view and included him in his stable of clothing brand On, which also includes Iga Swiatek and Ben Shelton. Roger is the always idol for the young Brazilian, former number 1 at Junior level (now he is 2, behind the Austrian Joel Schwaerzler) and champion at the 2023 US Open, in the final against the American Learner Tien after beating the our Federico Cinà in three sets.
COMPARISONS WITH SINNER
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Fonseca looks at the phenomena of the past and those of the present: he likes Zverev, tries to emulate Alcaraz (the Spaniard also won the first match of his career in Rio de Janeiro, four years ago) and in Brazil he is compared to Sinner: “I like play aggressive, like Jannik. My backhand is more consistent than my forehand, although the latter shot is my main weapon. I have a good serve and very skinny legs. This is why in Brazil they call me ‘little Sinner’”. Aspects of the game that actually came out in the victory against Fils: extremely flexible arm, ability to generate power even with feet far from the baseline, clean backhand (even along the line) and spirit of initiative, with volleys and dumps.
NO INSTAGRAM
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As a Brazilian, he thrives on clay. But the results obtained as a junior suggest that he is one of those complete players who can find results anywhere, just like Alcaraz, former champion at Wimbledon and US Open. Together with the Spaniard he trained in the past in Rio, the city where he was born and where his coach (Guilherme Teixeira) built a special academy a couple of years ago. There is a significant pact between Fonseca and the coach, for a 17-year-old boy: during tournaments, Joao cannot use Instagram. The relationship between the two is very strong, Teixeira does not neglect any aspect of the boy’s growth: injury prevention, for example, is already a component followed with extreme attention. A couple on a mission: soon Fonseca could be up there, competing with the strongest. Him perhaps with Sinner and Alcaraz. And in the boy’s head there is already the ultimate goal: to become number 1.
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