The young prodigy emerges from the shadows and captivates the nation after his exploits at the Australian Open; promising statistics spark optimism for the future.
João Fonseca is on everyone’s lips as sports fans in Brazil come 2025. At just 18 years old, he made his Australian Open debut like it was child’s play, knocking out Andrey Rublev, world number 9. This success is nothing new, but it is the first time Fonseca has broken the tennis bubble in his short career, drawing praise from legends like Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Andy Roddick and Boris Becker, and he demonstrates itself a potential to be on the same level as these names.
Fonseca’s rise began in late 2024 when he was crowned undefeated champion of the Next Gen Finals, a tournament bringing together the eight best players under the age of 20 in the world. Just after the New Year, he won another title at the Canberra Challenger, an ATP 125 event.
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These accomplishments are remarkable, especially when you consider that Fonseca was still competing in the junior categories until 2023 and only transitioned fully to professional tennis last year. He won three qualifying matches to advance to the Australian Open against Rublev.
His fastest serve in the tournament reached 214 km/h, surpassing Carlos Alcaraz’s record. At just 21 years old, the Spaniard is a tennis phenomenon, ranked third in the world and already winner of the US Open, Wimbledon and Roland Garros. The Australian Open remains the only Grand Slam title missing from his collection.
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Fonseca’s forehand is also notable, reaching 181 km/h, which was the fastest recorded at the Australian Open that day, even surpassing Alcaraz’s forehand which was 178 km/h. h.
The match against Rublev highlighted Fonseca’s audacity. While a second serve is usually a safe option for most players, Fonseca showed no fear, scoring a second serve at 175 km/h, higher than the top 10 players’ average of 158 km/h. h.
In his victory against the Russian, Fonseca recorded 70% first serve accuracy (84 out of 120), won 77% of points at the net (14 out of 18) and managed to break Rublev’s serve 83% of the time ( 5 out of 6).
Whatever happens during the rest of the Australian Open, João Fonseca has broken through the tennis bubble and introduced himself to Brazilian fans. Djokovic believes the young star is the best talent Brazil has seen since Guga. Soon, the Brazilian will reach a level where he himself will be a reference in the sport.
João Fonseca will return to competition at the Australian Open in the early hours of this Thursday 16. The tennis star will face Italian Lorenzo Sonego, ranked 55th in the ATP rankings, in the second round of the Grand Slam. The match between João Fonseca and Lorenzo Sonego is scheduled as the fourth on Court 1573, and play is expected to start around 3 a.m. (Brasília time), barring any changes in the tournament schedule. The duel will be broadcast on ESPN (cable) and Disney+ (streaming).
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