Estoril, Portugal–
João Fonseca is already one of the biggest names and biggest draws on the ATP tour, with many expecting him to be a dominant force soon. While his defeat to Tommy Paul in Madrid was certainly highly disappointing for him, it certainly didn’t displease the Estoril tournament organizers since having Fonseca alone significantly increases the interest of the tournament.
However, the Brazilian’s stay in Estoril was short lived as he got defeated in straight sets by Jesper de Jong in straight sets in today’s night session. It was a mix of a great performance by De Jong and a Fonseca well below the level he has often shown this year and that saw him win an ATP 250 in Buenos Aires and beat Rublev at the Australian Open.
At 18, Fonseca still has an element of inconsistency in his game, which makes him capable of some amazing performances against top ranked opponents but also vulnerable to lower ranked opposition on any given day. With that said, Fonseca seemed to enjoy the experience of playing in Estoril and vowed to be back at some point. “Estoril’s tournament director believed in me when I wasn’t that good. I’m grateful for that. I hope to comeback one day. For me playing here was a bit like playing in Rio”, he said.
While, exceptionally, Estoril was a challenger event this year, it will go back to being an ATP event from next season and the tournament’s organization and fans in Portugal will certainly hope to see Fonseca back in action, looking to add his name to an illustrious list of champions that includes the likes of Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Stan Wawrinka and other Slam winners and legends of the sport.
With Fonseca out, it becomes even harder to predict who will become champion on Sunday as there doesn’t seem to be any clear favorite; the next few days will surely be filled with close and exciting matches.
Main Photo Credit: Jonathan Hui/The Desert Sun/USAToday Sports
