Joao Fonseca won the NextGen ATP Finals on Sunday night in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, beating Learner Tien 2-4, 4-3(8), 4-0, 4-2 in one hour and 27 minutes.
“I was really nervous before the match,” the Brazilian said. “I knew it was going to be so difficult. I played a final against Learner in juniors (2023 U.S. Open) and I know the way he can play. He is such a nice guy and a great player, so I knew it was going to be difficult–mentally and physically. But I got my way through.”
Fonseca made his way through the tournament without a single loss. His 3-0 round-robin record includes wins over Arthur Fils and Jakub Mensik, preceding a semifinal rout of Luca Van Assche. He becomes the third 18-year-old to triumph at the prestigious 20-and-under tournament, joining Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.
Both Sinner and Alcaraz, of course, have since climbed to No. 1 in the world. Fonseca eventually hopes to do the same.
“It is amazing how I have improved physically and mentally,” he said. “I have been very strong mentally, winning matches against Top 50, Top 20 players. I am proud of myself, but of course I want more. My dream is to become No. 1. Of course, now after winning (the) NextGen, I want to enjoy it this week and relax and celebrate with my family. I want to enjoy the moment and I am very pleased and thankful for this year.”
Other past NextGen champions include Stefanos Tsitsipas and Brandon Nakashima.
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.