RIO DE JANEIRO — Young tennis prodigy João Fonseca faced disappointment in his home crowd at the Rio Open, suffering a loss in the first round just two days after claiming his inaugural ATP title.
Fonseca went down to France’s Alexandre Muller, ranked No. 60, with a score of 6-1, 7-6 (4), contributing to his struggle with 34 unforced errors and showing signs of fatigue throughout the match.
The 18-year-old Brazilian had recently achieved a significant milestone by winning his first ATP title in the final of the Argentina Open on Sunday.
Muller is set to compete next against Argentina’s Tomás Martin Etcheverry in the tournament’s following round.
“It was challenging to play against such a talented opponent and perhaps 5,000 fans, but I’m thrilled to have secured the win today,” Muller remarked. “I felt composed for half of the match. Although I missed my opportunities to secure a break in the second set, he started to elevate his game. I executed a strong tiebreak to finish off.”
Over the weekend, Fonseca made history as the first male player born in 2006 or later to clinch a top-level ATP singles title. His victory makes him the 10th younger champion in the history of the ATP Tour and the youngest South American player to secure a title since 1990.
Last year, the promising athlete advanced to the quarterfinals of this ATP 500 tournament in Rio and rounded off his 2024 season with a title at the Next Gen ATP Finals in December.
Following his recent success in Buenos Aires, Fonseca improved his ranking by 31 spots, now sitting at No. 68.