Joao Fonseca has certainly shown signs of improvement in his second season on the ATP Tour so far.
The Brazilian teenager delivered an impressive debut campaign in 2025, during which he clinched his first two titles, while also reaching a career-high ranking of 24th in the world.
In 2026, Fonseca started slowly, but has since improved his performances and recently recorded his best finish at an ATP Masters 1000 event by making the quarterfinals in Monte-Carlo.
Where do you think Joao Fonseca will be ranked at the end of the 2026 season?
For a while now, the young star has been tipped as the main candidate to snap the dominance of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
Serena Williams’ former coach, Rick Macci, thinks Fonseca can definitely reach the level of the ‘new two’.
Rick Macci discusses Joao Fonseca’s potential in men’s tennis
Speaking to TSH Tennis, asked how long it will take before Fonseca is competing with Alcaraz and Sinner for majors, Macci said: “When I saw him win the U.S. Open juniors, but the way he did it, even though the backhand was still a little dodgy, I saw that he had some completeness to his game.
“His forehand was nuclear, so that means he can play through you. Since he won the juniors, that means mentally there’s something there.
Which Grand Slam title would you like to see Joao Fonseca win?
“But to answer your question, I’ll go out on a limb and say next year, at this time, he’ll definitely be top five; he could even be number three.
“Listen, he’s the real deal. Once again, he’s not a generational talent like Alcaraz, okay, because Alcaraz has that turbo speed on another level, and Alcaraz has everything. He has everything.
“But Fonseca can definitely go in there, and battle, and he will definitely beat both of them before it’s all said and done. But will he win a Grand Slam? 100%. He’ll win multiple Grand Slams.”
Joao Fonseca’s record at Grand Slams so far in his career
Many have predicted Fonseca to be a Grand Slam champion one day, despite his failure to make a deep run at a major yet.
Fonseca made his Grand Slam debut at the Australian Open in 2025, where he took the tennis world by storm by knocking out ninth seed Andrey Rublev in the first round.
He quickly exited the tournament after losing to Lorenzo Sonego in the second round, however, falling to the Italian in a tough five-setter.
Then, Fonseca recorded consecutive third-round finishes at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, before going only as far as round two at the US Open.
In his second-ever Melbourne campaign this year, Fonseca went out in the first round, losing to Eliot Spizzirri.
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