Brazillian teenage sensation Joao Fonseca pulled off an upset on his main draw debut at the Australian Open after beating ninth seed Andrey Rublev in straight sets.
The lack of experience failed to hinder Fonseca as he powered his way to a 7-6(1), 6-3, 7-6(5), win over Rublev, who last lost in the first round back in 2019. Cheered on by an animated crowd, the 18-year-old fired 51 winners and 14 aces during what was his first match against a top-10 player on the Tour.
“I just enjoyed every moment on this court. It’s an amazing court,” the world No.112 said during his on-court interview.
“It’s my first time playing in a huge stadium and my first main draw of a Grand Slam. So I just enjoyed playing.
“I really want to thank this amazing crowd. There were a lot of Brazilians here who were cheering for me and I just enjoyed every moment.”
Fonseca is a former junior world No.1 who claimed the US Open boy’s title less than two years ago. He has surged to the limelight after winning the ATP Next Gen Finals in December before starting 2025 by winning a Challenger title. At the Australian Open, he breezed through qualifying where he dropped only 12 games in three matches played before knocking out Rublev. He is now on a 14-match winning streak across all levels of the game.
The powerful hitting of the youngster is just one of the things that makes him an exciting prospect for the future. Fronseca’s fastest serve clocked in at 214km/h and his first serve average was 191km/h. He also has the ability to use slice shots to his advantage.
“I just tried to do all the intensity and important points,” he said of his performance in the two tiebreakers against Rublev.
“I went for the shots. That was the difference today.”
Fonseca is in the same section of the draw as Daniil Medvedev. He will next play Lorenzo Sonego who beat Stan Wawrinka 6-4, 5-7, 7-5, 7-5, in his opening match.
“Like Roger (Federer) says, talent is not enough without hard work. So I put in a lot of hard work. Just me and my team know that,” he concluded.
Fonseca is only the second male player in the Open Era to defeat a top 10 player in their first Grand Slam match after Mario Ancic.