Just a few years ago, João Fonseca was a young tennis enthusiast, eager to collect autographs from the world’s top players. Now, children are starting to line up for his own signature.
At 18 years old, Fonseca is quickly becoming one of the most promising young talents in men’s tennis. On Thursday, he impressed once again with a first-round win over Britain’s Jacob Fearnley at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
The match was no walk in the park for Fonseca, who had to contend with strong winds and found himself down 3-1 in the deciding set. However, he managed to turn things around and secure a 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 victory. This marks his second-ever win at an ATP Masters 1000 event, showcasing the composure and determination that is making him a fan favorite.
“Everything is new for me – I’m still young and still adjusting,” Fonseca said after his match. “But it’s amazing to see people – not just Brazilians, but fans from all over the world – cheering for me, calling my name, asking for autographs. It’s so nice to see kids and others watching me play.”
After securing the first title of his career at the Argentina Open last month, Fonseca has begun to attract attention from the tennis world’s elite.
“There’s a great level of balance, professionalism, and dedication, similar to what we’ve seen with (Carlos) Alcaraz over the last few years,” Novak Djokovic remarked before his own match at Indian Wells.
Fonseca’s victory over Fearnley, particularly the way he won the last five games under pressure, is likely to earn him even more recognition from the sport’s top players.
He quickly took control, breaking serve twice early on and winning the first set with a forehand winner after Fearnley stretched to make a return.
However, Fearnley, ranked just one spot below Fonseca at No. 81, elevated his game in the second set, leveling the match. In the final set, Fearnley broke early and held serve, but Fonseca responded with a break of his own at 3-3, and then surged through the remaining games to win. He sealed the victory in two hours with a perfectly placed backhand volley.
“The first round of a Masters tournament, with windy conditions and playing against a great opponent – it was tough, but I managed to get through, so I’m really happy with how I fought today,” Fonseca said after his win.
He will now face world No. 14 Jack Draper from Britain in the second round at Indian Wells. A strong performance in California would further boost Fonseca’s breakthrough year. Earlier, he knocked out ninth seed Andrey Rublev at the Australian Open in January. Just a month before that, he became the second-youngest winner of the Next Gen ATP Finals in Saudi Arabia, a tournament for the best male players aged 20 and under.
In other news, Australian Nick Kyrgios’ comeback attempt was halted by a right wrist injury during his first-round match against Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands.
Injuries have been a consistent setback for Kyrgios in recent years, and he has not won a Tour-level match since October 2022. The former Wimbledon finalist retired from his match while trailing 7-6 (7), 3-0 against van de Zandschulp, having previously held a set point in the first-set tie-break. This means he misses out on a potential second-round matchup against Novak Djokovic.
Kyrgios appeared emotional after the match and later shared that he had experienced a flare-up of a recurring wrist injury during practice two days before the match.
“No one in the sport has undergone a wrist reconstruction and tried to play after that,” Kyrgios told reporters following his match. “There have been players who’ve had wrist surgeries, but nothing as severe as what I’ve experienced.”
He added, “At this point, it’s all an experiment,” expressing uncertainty about when he would be able to play again. “I was told there’s a chance I might never play tennis again.”
The first round of matches at Indian Wells continues on Friday, with men’s top seed Alexander Zverev set to face Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor.