For many, Tuesday at Australian Open 2025 marked the first time they had witnessed Joao Fonseca in action, either in person or watching on a screen.
The 18-year-old Brazilian, after all, was making his Grand Slam debut.
But if the pace of his shots and their trajectory in a straight-sets win over top-10 regular Andrey Rublev looked familiar, well, you were onto something.
Fonseca idolised Roger Federer and countryman Gustavo “Guga” Kuerten growing up. In interviews, he said he would like to join the company of two active players closer to his age, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.
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His ball speed and spin rate resembled that of Sinner – the defending champion and world No.1 – and four-time Grand Slam winner Alcaraz.
In fact, his average topspin forehand speed – also including qualifying – of 135km/h exceeded that of both Alcaraz (131km/h) and Sinner (126km/h) through one round at AO 2025.
His average topspin backhand speed of 120km/h was identical to Alcaraz’s, and clocked in higher than Sinner’s 113km/h.
The average amount of spin generated by Fonseca on his forehand (3075 revolutions per minute) only slightly deviated from Alcaraz’s (3051). The flatter Sinner drive registered at 2901rpm.
And on the backhand, Fonseca punched in at 1922rpm, compared to Alcaraz’s 1923 and Sinner’s 1902.
Of course, harnessing all that power is vitally important, but Fonseca did just that against a Rublev who was forced to spend more time counterpunching than he would have hoped for.
Fonseca’s stellar numbers – 51 winners and 32 unforced errors – confirmed the efficiency of his power game. He upped his winning streak to 14 matches at all levels and has tallied 22 consecutive sets.
Novak Djokovic – who met Fonseca for the first time after Wednesday’s win over Portugal’s Jaime Faria – had long known about the Rio native.
“I’ve been a fan of his game,” said the 24-time Grand Slam winner.
“I’ve been watching him also last year. I think in one of my interviews for the ATP I was saying I see some of my game in his game, particularly when I was his age when you're kind of carelessly going for the shots, just showing what you're capable of.
“He’s got the goods, definitely. Future is bright for him, no doubt, if he keeps going this way.”
Fonseca’s immediate future brings a clash with Lorenzo Sonego at 1573 Arena on Thursday, following fellow Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia’s match with Erika Andreeva.
Sonego is one of the few players so far at the highest level that Fonseca previously faced. Fonseca downed the Masters semifinalist on clay last year in Bucharest in two tight sets.
Fonseca wants the wins to keep coming.
“I think when I arrived here, my first goal was to qualify for the main draw,” said Fonseca.
“Of course, my expectations are bigger now. I want more and more. Yeah, want more and more. I think that’s the mentality of the champion.”