Getting to know Joao Fonseca

At the age of 19, Joao Fonseca had already been to most of the major stops on the tennis tour.

But Wednesday marked a first for the Brazilian prodigy, playing in Montreal. He also picked up his first win at the National Bank Open presented by Rogers, ousting a Grand Slam finalist, Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Let’s get to know more about Fonseca.

How it started

Fonseca started playing mini tennis with his dad, Christiano, at the age of two. “When he was two, we were like, ‘This boy is different,’” said Dad. Fonseca later played tennis while the family vacationed in the mountains in Brazil.

A tournament close to home

He regularly watched the Rio Open in person, which upped his motivation. That included getting a front-row seat to see Rafael Nadal in 2014. His home wasn’t far away from the tournament site.

Top junior

Fonseca flourished in the junior ranks, reaching No. 1 in the world. He won the last junior Grand Slam he ever played, the 2023 US Open, over another fast-rising player, Learner Tien.

College career?

Despite his successful junior career, the original plan for Fonseca was to play college tennis at the University of Virginia. But with his good early results at the pro level, he changed his mind.

READ: Fonseca avoids losing his cool, beats Tsitsipas for first Montreal win

In fact, Rafael Jodar and Fonseca could have been teammates at Virginia. The Spaniard, who is currently at a career-high of no. 15, turned pro at the start of 2026 following one year at Virginia.

Coming full circle

Fonseca played his first ATP tournament in Rio in 2023 while still a junior. The next year he returned and advanced to the quarter-finals in front of his passionate home fans.

A sizzling stint

Fonseca strung together a hot streak starting from the end of the 2024 season — winning 14 consecutive matches. During the run, he beat Tien twice at the ATP Next Gen Finals, won a Challenger title and successfully qualified for the Australian Open.

In his Grand Slam main draw debut, Fonseca knocked off Andrey Rublev in straight sets. He hit Rublev off the court at times, finishing the match with 51 winners.

Growing pains

Injuries have been an issue for the young Fonseca. He didn’t play any Australian Open warmup events this year because of a back injury. Then during the grass-court swing, he suffered from a right shoulder injury.

In between was where he made headlines around the world, handing Novak Djokovic just his second ever loss from two sets up at a major (at Roland-Garros). That helped Fonseca make a first Major quarter-final.

Meeting Jannik & Carlos

Fonseca has often been mentioned as a player who could join the Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz duopoly. Has he played them? Yes, in 2026 for the first time. He lost to Alcaraz in straight sets in Miami after being beaten by Sinner in two tiebreakers at Indian Wells.

Roger an idol

Fonseca’s two main tennis idols growing up were his fellow Brazilian, Gustavo Kuerten, and Roger Federer. He also drew inspiration from Brazilian women’s pro Beatriz Haddad Maia, a Grand Slam semifinalist who also reached the NBO final in Toronto in 2022.

Photo: Pascal Ratthé