Famous journalist believes Joao Fonseca could go down the road of Carlos Alcaraz for ‘this’ reason

John McEnroe termed Joao Fonseca the 'next Carlos Alcaraz' after his first round win at the Australian Open.

Famous journalist believes Joao Fonseca could go down the road of Carlos Alcaraz for ‘this’ reason

Joao Fonseca and Carlos Alcaraz (Clay Tennis)

Carlos Alcaraz has been one of the biggest names in tennis recently. The Spaniard has reached the pinnacle of the sport and has won four Grand Slam titles in his career. However, just a few years after Alcaraz’s emergence, Joao Fonseca has become another rising star.

The Brazilian talent has caught attention since his Next Gen ATP Finals win in December. Unfortunately, it has come at a cost, as famous journalist Jose Moron highlights a similarity between the two players.

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There is not a press conference where Fonseca is not asked about Kuerten. The future Guga, the new Kuerten. He tries to relieve himself of the pressure by saying he wants to be Joao, but the journalists insist. Kuerten and more Kuerten. It was the same with Alcaraz when he started, they talked about Nadal all the time. I think in his first year they kept asking him about Nadal. Fortunately for him, his successes have silenced the comparisons. He was asked, he answered. Let him be Joao. Kuerten is gone. There is only one left. Time will tell what Fonseca will be. We all know careers that have been destroyed by comparisons. Let’s not do that again. I think Joao has a lot of work to do, but I hope it doesn’t affect him too much.

Jose Moron wrote on X

Alcaraz has not only been compared to Rafael Nadal but has also played alongside the Spanish legend. With his Grand Slam victories, especially at Roland Garros, the comparisons have grown further. Since Nadal’s retirement, there have been many hints about his plans after tennis. If he stays in the sport, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him in the same camp as Alcaraz.

Meanwhile, Fonseca is the biggest name to emerge from Brazil since Gustavo Kuerten. In fact, South America has lacked a major tennis star since Juan Martin del Potro, who retired last December. The tall Argentine remains the last South American to win a Grand Slam title, achieving the feat at the 2009 US Open.

Joao Fonseca showing great form at Buenos Aires

Brazilian rising star Joao Fonseca has eliminated a home favorite for the second day in a row at the IEB+ Argentina Open. After defeating eighth seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the first round, he won 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 against lucky loser Federico Coria in the ATP 250 event.

Joao Fonseca
Joao Fonseca (via X)

Despite the crowd cheering for Coria, Fonseca had strong support from Brazilian fans and neutrals. The atmosphere in Buenos Aires was lively as the 18-year-old battled his way to victory.

Fonseca is now the youngest quarter-finalist at the tournament since Richard Gasquet in 2004. This is his third quarter-final at the tour level. He has used the Next Gen Accelerator programme, which gives young players more chances to compete in ATP events.

With this result, Fonseca has climbed 11 spots to No. 88 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. He is now on track to achieve a new career-high ranking.