Joao Fonseca will begin his second season on the ATP Tour at this year’s Australian Open.
Fonseca withdrew from the Brisbane International, as well as the Adelaide International due to an ongoing back injury.
The Brazilian stated he and his team were doing their best to recover for the Australian Open, where he reached the second round last year.
Where do you think Joao Fonseca will be ranked at the end of the 2026 season?
Following his Next Gen ATP Finals triumph at the end of 2024, Fonseca announced himself to the tennis world by knocking ninth seed Andrey Rublev out at Melbourne Park in straight sets.
Now, ahead of his second appearance at the tournament, the 19-year-old has provided a final fitness update.
Joao Fonseca says he is ‘feeling better’ every day
As per the Guardian, Fonseca said: “Every day I’m feeling better. Hopefully I can be near 100% [when the tournament starts on Sunday].
“I need to respect my body and take the right decision because I have a long career ahead of me. I want to play [for] 15 more years.
“So you need to take care of your body and understand that sometimes you have to wait. But hopefully I can play well these next weeks.
“If I don’t, well, it doesn’t matter. It’s part of the process,” concluded Fonseca, who enjoyed a breakthrough year on the ATP Tour last year.
Which Grand Slam title would you like to see Joao Fonseca win?
Joao Fonseca’s third-round roadblock at the Australian Open
Should Fonseca choose to play at the Australian Open, he will face American Eliot Spizzirri.
In round two, he will come up against either Luca Nardi, or Yibing Wu.
After that, however, Fonseca will likely be faced with world number two Jannik Sinner, with the Italian bidding to complete an Australian Open three-peat.
Fonseca and Sinner have never clashed at a tour-level event before, but a third round meeting between the two on Rod Laver Arena could very well be on the cards.
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