João Fonseca was too strong for Luca Van Assche, and the Frenchman lost sharply in three sets, missing his chance to reach the final of the ATP Next Gen Finals.
For the second year in a row, Luca Van Assche had reached the last four of the ATP NextGen Finals. Last year, it was released by Arthur Son at this stage, a prelude to an ultimately complicated 2024 season. But the former winner of Roland-Garros juniors has always been at ease indoors, except that he was not the favorite against João Fonseca.
And we understood why in the first round. The Brazilian put maximum pressure on the Frenchman, who did not have a calm throw-in. The first held, the second failed and the first set fell into the hands of Fonseca. Same scenario in the second, since he ceded his commitment to 2-2with the added bonus of a medical timeout in the process. Not enough to reverse the trend, since the Brazilian concluded the second set and saw himself close to victory.
And when he broke at the start of the third set, we had few illusions about the final scenario. Certainly, Luca Van Assche will deliver a magnificent last stand by saving four break points in a row, but will have to surrender, 4-2, 4-2, 4-1. A logical result, João Fonseca was too strong but this time the Frenchman perhaps laid the foundations for a successful start to the season, unlike the previous one.
