Joao Fonseca has a lot of admiration for Carlos Alcaraz, but he plans to push that aside when they lock horns at the Miami Open.
The 19-year-old Brazilian has booked his first Tour-level meeting with the world No.1 after moving into the second round on Thursday. Fonseca defeated Fabian Marozsan 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 in what was a case of sweet revenge after losing to the Hungarian in Rome last year. He is making his second appearance in Miami after 2025, when he became the youngest man since Juan Martin del Potro to reach the third round of the tournament.
Alcaraz, who received a bye in the first round, will be the second high-profile match Fonseca has played this month. In Indian Wells, he took Jannik Sinner to two tiebreakers before losing in straight sets.
“Facing Alcaraz is a great experience for me,” Fonseca told reporters after beating Marozsan.
“In the last tournament I played against Jannik and now playing against Carlos is a great achievement for me.
“For me, as a teenager in the second year on Tour, facing those guys is just important for my development, at any time.
“I want to face them, to see how I am at my level, where I can go, what those guys do that the other players don’t, and how they deal with pressure.”
Fonseca is currently ranked 39th in the world, but has been as high as 24th. Last year, he won his first two Tour titles in Buenos Aires (becoming the youngest Brazilian champion in the Open Era) and Basel. He is considered one of the rising stars of men’s tennis, but there is still room for improvement with his consistency on the Tour. He started 2026 by winning just one out of four matches played before reaching the fourth round at Indian Wells.
As for his approach to facing Alcaraz, Fonseca believes his mindset will be key and looks to follow in the footsteps of Sinner.
“I need to face him the way Jannik faces him,” he said.
“I respect him, the player that he is, the person that he is, but on court, I can’t. I need to face him as a guy that I can beat. I need to enter the court with a lot of intensity and try to play my best tennis.”
Whilst the future is bright for Fonseca, who is a former junior world No.1 and US Open boys’ champion, he currently has only one top 10 win. That was against Andrey Rublev at the 2025 Australian Open.
“I think it’s important to be confident in yourself, but at the same time staying with your feet on the ground, being humble. I’m a top 40 guy playing against the top one guy.” He explained.
“He’s the favourite by far. I’m just an underdog, but I need to believe that I can win. If not, I’m just not gonna have any chance.
“That’s the mentality, that’s the way that I need to step on court and try to get the opportunities.”
Fonseca’s clash is scheduled to take place on Friday on the main stadium court. It will be the first evening match, meaning it will not begin before 7pm local time.
