Joao Fonseca handed golden opportunity at Rio Open following opening win

Joao Fonseca opened his Rio Open run on Tuesday with a straight-sets win over fellow Brazilian Thiago Monteiro, getting his season back on track after a slow start.

The 19-year-old came through the match 7-6, 6-1 and will now face Ignacio Buse of Peru in the next round. Fonseca, who has called for changes at the tournament in recent weeks, said the conditions were tough and he was glad to get through.

After a strong 2025 campaign that raised expectations, Fonseca has had a rocky start to this year. He battled a lower back injury during the Australian swing and then suffered an early exit at the Buenos Aires Open.

This win against Monteiro marked his first of the new season, and he’ll be looking to build on it as he tries to find some momentum again.

Joao Fonseca eyes a big opportunity at Rio Open

This week’s ATP 500 schedule features two tournaments, and of the two, the Rio Open looks like the more manageable route for Joao Fonseca.

Francisco Cerundolo, who sits at number 19 in the world rankings and recently won in Buenos Aires, is the top seed remaining in Rio. Both Luciano Darderi and Sebastian Baez have already been knocked out of this year’s event.

In contrast, Qatar had a field that included Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev.

Fonseca won’t have an easy run to the title by any means, but it’s certainly a friendlier path than what he’d have faced in Doha.

If he gets past Buse, his next match would be against either Matteo Berrettini or Dusan Lajovic. A potential semi-final could be against Cerundolo, with Tomas Etcheverry possibly waiting in the final. Etcheverry is seeded eighth and ranked 51st globally.

The way things are shaping up, Fonseca may not find a better chance to claim the title than this one. He’s already surpassed his showing from last year when he lost his first-round match to Alexandre Muller.

Thiago Monteiro backs Joao Fonseca after Rio Open defeat

After the match, Monteiro spoke to ESPN Brazil and praised Fonseca’s “no ceiling” potential.

Monteiro said: “He [Fonseca] has a lot of guts, a lot of power, has all the fundamentals at a very high level. He’s really a player with no ceiling. My full support goes to him.”

Buse told Clay Magazine last July that fans should give Fonseca space to grow without extra pressure.

Buse had said: “He’s two years younger than me. I only came across him in my last year as a junior. He was incredible — won the US Open, finished as world number one.”

The Garoto [boy] is a great kid. I hope he stays that way — he’s very humble. His team works really well, they’re all humble people.”

Buse added: “I think people need to leave him alone, develop in peace because as soon as he gets a good result, they start piling on pressure.

The kid plays incredibly well. And I believe he’ll be up there among the best, but like everyone, he’ll have to go through his own process.”

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