Rising tennis sensation Joao Fonseca recently opened up on the players he looks up to, including Roger Federer. He also revealed that despite being a fan, he did not watch the Swiss’ 2019 Wimbledon final loss to Novak Djokovic.
Fonseca has been in the spotlight in recent weeks, thanks to his historic debut on the ATP circuit. The Brazilian tennis player, who was awarded a wild card at last week’s Rio Open, made quite a splash in front of his home crowd by reaching the quarterfinal with victories over Arthur Fils and Christian Garin. The 17-year-old thus created history as the first player born in 2006 to win an ATP match.
In a recent interview with UOL, Joao Fonseca shed light on his childhood, his family, and the players he loves watching. The World No. 343 disclosed that he was a “big fan” of Roger Federer and frequently flaunted the former World No. 1’s shirts. He added that his mother shared a similar fascination for the Swiss legend.
"When I was younger, I wore every Federer shirt possible. I was a big fan of him. My family has always been. My mother is a fanatic about him," Fonseca told UOL.
The 17-year-old, however, noted that he hardly watched any tennis matches growing up. And despite being his fan, he also skipped the 20-time Grand Slam champion’s 2019 Wimbledon epic against Novak Djokovic, something he said he now “regrets.”
"I wasn’t much of a game watcher. For example, I didn’t watch the [2019] Wimbledon final between Federer and Djokovic. I didn’t like watching tennis," Joao Fonseca said. "Yes. I regret it a lot, but I didn’t really like watching tennis."
While Joao Fonseca missed out on the Roger Federer-Novak Djokovic epic, he now watches tennis regularly: "I really like Jannik Sinner's game"
Joao Fonseca has had a change of heart in recent years. While the Brazilian opted against watching Roger Federer’s devastating Wimbledon loss to Novak Djokovic, he has since taken a liking to watching tennis matches.
"These days, I watch a lot of games," Fonseca said in the aforementioned interview.
The teenager, who previously revealed that he is nicknamed “Little Sinner,” said that he enjoys watching the Italian’s matches.
"A guy I really like watching these days is [Jannik Sinner]. I really like his game. An aggressive game, he goes for the ball too, he’s courageous," he said.
Fonseca also expressed his admiration for Carlos Alcaraz and praised the duo’s ability to be on par with players like Novak Djokovic.
"I like seeing Carlos too. I like to see these young people who, despite all the pressure manage to maintain their mentality. The mental strength they have to react like these big, experienced guys like Djokovic, people who have been on the tour longer, to win this type of game. This is very difficult," he added.
Beyond his recent surge, Joao Fonseca has earned several other accolades in his young career, which include winning the 2023 US Open boys’ title, being the 2023 world champion on the junior circuit, and finishing the season ranked No. 1 (he is the first Brazilian junior to do so).
The World No. 343 is also sponsored by Roger Federer-backed ‘On.’ The sportswear brand has Iga Swiatek and Ben Shelton as its ambassadors.
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