John McEnroe compares the emerging Joao Fonseca with ‘this’ player after his heroic Australian Open debut

John McEnroe praised Joao Fonseca for composure during his first round win over Andrey Rublev at the Australian Open.

John McEnroe compares the emerging Joao Fonseca with ‘this’ player after his heroic Australian Open debut

Joao Fonseca and John McEnroe (via X/CNN)

Joao Fonseca has been all the buzz in tennis for the past few months. But after making history at the Australian Open by becoming the first teenager to win his first main draw match at the event, his fame has shot up further. This has led tennis legend John McEnroe to reveal a top player he sees in Fonseca.

The Brazilian teenager had his breakthrough last season after winning the Next Gen ATP Finals in Saudi Arabia and finished the year as World No.145. This season, instead of competing at an ATP event, Fonseca featured at the Canberra Challenger in Australia and went on to win the title, rising to No.112 ahead of the Australian Open.

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He won all his qualifying matches before beating Andrey Rublev 7-6, (1) 6-3, 7-6 (5) on Tuesday (January 14). Since then the 18-year-old has been tipped for big things in the men’s circuit this year. Indeed, John McEnroe revealed that he sees him becoming like Carlos Alcaraz in the future.

A few years ago, Alcaraz was a rising star like Fonseca and made his Top 100 debut at the of 18. He has gone on to win four Grand Slams and also became the youngest World No.1 in the history of the ATP Tour. McEnroe says that the teenager is as strong as an axe.

I just heard about him last year or so and pretty recently at Riyadh when he played the Under-20 Next Gen Championship. I was like, O my God! But what really opened my eyes to him was that in the first round last night against Rublev, the guy made Rublev look like he wasn’t ready to hit the big balls. And he’s totally composed, and physically, at 18 years old, he looks strong as an axe. When I look at him, I see the next Carlos Alcaraz.

John McEnroe said via Eurosport

Fonseca will play Lorenzo Sonego in the second round of the Australian Open on Thursday (January 16). The Brazilian will hope to get the better of the Italian as he bids to have a good run at the Grand Slam event.

Joao Fonseca says he has the mentality of a champion after earning first Australian Open win

Joao Fonseca is on course to break into the Top 100 for the first time in his career. His straight-set win over Andrey Rublev at the Australian Open will see him rise from World No.112 to No.98 even if he fails to win his second-round match. The Brazilian star’s significant rise since November is only a testament to how much talent and hard work he has combined.

Joao Fonseca
Joao Fonseca (via X)

After his victory against Andrey Rublev, he revealed that he just wanted to enjoy his moment on the court. He added that he has bigger expectations in the tournament because he has the mind of a champion.

I just enjoyed the moment. This is an amazing court. It’s my first time playing in a huge stadium. I really want to thank this amazing crowd. There were a lot of Brazilians here cheering for me. If course my expectations are bigger now. I want more and more, I think that is the mentality of champions.

Joao Fonseca said

Fonseca will play Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego in the second round; if he does win the tie, he is expected to enter the Top 80. If he then reaches the second week of the Australian Open, the Brazilian has a chance of cracking the top 50.