Record breaking 18-year-old tennis wonderkid gets messages from Neymar and Ronaldo after winning first title

Joao Fonseca has been praised by footballing royalty after becoming the youngest Brazilian to win an ATP tournament.

The 18-year-old won the ATP 500 tournament in Buenos Aires, beating five Argentinians on his way to the title.

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A year ago he was ranked 655th in the world and has made an astonishing climb up to 68th.

He was given a heroes welcome upon touching back down in Brazil and has already caught the eye of the tennis world.

In a recent press conference, he shared his emotional reflections on receiving touching messages from Brazilian sporting legends.

“They’re idols… people I saw as untouchable… for kids to say I’m an idol to them is crazy.

“I feel honoured by the messages I have received from national and international idols. They know who I am.

“Neymar, Vinicius, Ronaldo. For kids to say I’m an idol to them is crazy. I’m very happy with everything that’s happening.”

The 18-year-old Brazilian triumphed over Francisco Cerundolo with a score of 6-4, 7-6 (7-1) in front of an enthusiastic crowd in Buenos Aires at the Argentina Open.

He now stands as the fourth youngest man since 2000 to win an ATP singles title, following in the footsteps of legends like Kei Nishikori, Rafael Nadal, and Carlos Alcaraz.

He is the 10th youngest champion in ATP Tour history and the first born in 2006 to celebrate this achievement.

“Even in Argentina, Brazilians are cheering for me. That’s amazing,” Fonseca told the crowd afterwards.

“What I’m living is just unbelievable. I want to thank my friends and sponsors for helping me achieve my dream — to just play tennis.”

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Following his impressive 2024 season, Fonseca went on to win the Next Gen ATP Finals, which features the best male players aged 21 and under.

He was the second-youngest champion in the tournament’s history after current world number one Jannik Sinner, who inspired Fonseca to turn professional following a hitting session in 2023.

Starting the year with an impressive upset against ninth seed Andrey Rublev in the Australian Open’s first round, he has caught the eye of Spain’s four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz, who views him as a future star.

“I was watching the match. I think he played a great match, his first ATP final,” Alcaraz said on Monday.

“It’s not easy to face an ATP final, and playing against Francisco Cerundolo in his hometown, I know it wasn’t easy.”

“I think the level he played at was insane. I was just really happy about him playing and getting his first ATP title.

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“His potential is huge. His level is really, really high. I saw a stat that at this part of the year last year, he was No. 660, and now he is No. 68. So, I’m pretty sure during the year he’s going to get higher.”

While Alcaraz doesn’t want to place pressure on Fonseca, he can’t help but look forward to their first official encounter.

“Potential No. 1? I don’t know. I think nobody knows that,” he added.

“I can say let’s see in the future, but he has potential; he has the level to get there or to fight for great things.

“So, I’m excited to see him in real life in a match. I’m excited to see if I’m going to play against him soon.”

Against Cerundolo, Fonseca showed remarkable resilience, bouncing back from an early first-set deficit to take control and serve for victory at 5-4 and 6-5 in the second set.

Despite facing two breaks from his seasoned opponent, Fonseca dominated the tiebreak, conceding just one point before clinching victory with a stunning angled forehand winner.

He is next in action at the Rio Open which starts on Monday 23rd February.