Fonseca on First-Round Loss at AO: “I Needed More Time”

All eyes were on Joao Fonseca ahead of this year’s Australian Open. The 19-year-old phenom was slated to face Jannik Sinner in the third round, a potential contest that many circled as a litmus test. Would the Brazilian make exceptional strides and keep storming up the rankings in 2026?

After his four-set loss to Eliot Spizzirri in round one on Day 3, we now know that we were getting ahead of ourselves. Fonseca, who was forced to pull out of Brisbane and Adelaide due to a back issue that surfaced a few days before Brisbane commenced, simply wasn’t ready to show his best tennis.

As a result, he ended up suffering his first ever first-round loss at a Grand Slam event, in his fifth main draw appearance at the majors.

Take nothing away from Spizzirri, who played sound tennis and was focused throughout as he powered past Fonseca, but this wasn’t the Brazilian at his best.

“I didn’t play very bad, but I didn’t play good as well,” Fonseca told reporters after his 6-4 2-6 6-1 6-2 loss to the former University of Texas standout. “I felt I wasn’t 100 percent yet. I’m not saying about pain or injuries. I’m saying about preparation of physique.”

Fonseca chalked up the loss as a learning experience. No regrets, he said.

“I will say I needed more time. Since beginning of Brisbane, I wasn’t playing, and then I came back, but slowly. Then I stopped again. So I was almost, like, 15 days without hitting 100 percent. I got slowly back on court here in Melbourne, so I felt I needed more rhythm. I needed more time to prepare physically.”

The rising star will head back home to practice in Rio, then attempt to defend his title on the red clay of Buenos Aires before heading to Rio.

“I tried my best today,” he said. “I think [it was] bad that I wasn’t 100 percent, but at the same time, it gives me maturity to keep going, to understand my body, to understand my limits. I’m still young and I’m still getting experience from that.”

Though it was a difficult day for Fonseca, the good news is that his back does appear to be 100 percent healed.

“I didn’t feel it today. Didn’t feel it yesterday,” he said. “Yeah, feeling good. I think it’s already 100 percent.”