Buenos Aires, Feb 18 (UNI) Teenager Joao Fonseca won his first ATP Tour title at the Argentina Open on Sunday, announcing himself as one of tennis’ brightest talents.
The 18-year-old Brazilian became the 10th-youngest player to win an ATP Tour title as he stunned home favorite Francisco Cerúndolo 6-4, 7-6(1) in Buenos Aires, according to a CNN report.
The victory on clay also made Fonseca the second-youngest South American to win a title in the Open Era after Argentina’s Guillermo Pérez Roldán in 1987.
“For me, this (moment) that I’m living is just unbelievable,” Fonseca said in his on-court interview after the match against Cerúndolo, adding: “My real dream is to play tennis. Of course, I want to be No. 1; of course, I want to win slams, titles, but my dream is just to play tennis and I’m living it.”
Fonseca had even reached Sunday’s final, his first on the ATP Tour, was remarkable enough. He saved two match points against Mariano Navone in the quarterfinals and also needed three sets to beat Laslo Djere and Federico Coria prior to facing Cerúndolo.
But Fonseca showed few signs of fatigue against the world No. 26. The pair exchanged breaks in the first two games of the match before Cerúndolo missed a gettable drive volley to go 4-3 behind.
Powered by his juggernaut forehand, Fonseca went on to claim the opening set with a crucial first ace of the match.
Another error from Cerúndolo, this time a wayward cross-court forehand, handed the teenager a break in the second set, but Fonseca was unable to serve out for the match on two occasions – at 5-4 and again at 6-5.
He rallied in the tie-break, however, and stormed into a commanding lead before completing the one-hour, 45-minute victory with a forehand winner.
At No. 99 in the world, Fonseca is the lowest-ranked champion in the history of the Argentina Open and the first man born in 2006 or later to win a tour-level title. He has risen to No. 68 in the rankings with the win.
Having made his ATP Tour debut in 2023, Fonseca won the ATP Next Gen Finals – a tournament for the world’s best male players aged 20 or younger – in December.
He then enjoyed the biggest upset of his career at the Australian Open a month later, defeating ninth-seed Andrey Rublev in the first round after coming through qualifying.
Overcoming the raucous home crowd to defeat Cerúndolo on Sunday, he said that he had moved “closer to my dream of becoming world No. 1.”
