Fonseca becomes first Brazilian junior to be named ITF World Champion
It has been a season that the prodigiously talented Joao Fonseca has been promising for some time and, at its conclusion, the 17-year-old is the year-end No. 1-ranked boy and an ITF World Champion.
With such an accolade comes a slice of history as Fonseca is the first Brazilian junior to be named an ITF World Champion. Gustavo Kuerten in singles and Bruno Soares and Marcelo Melo in doubles are the only previous Brazilian winners of the prestigious award.
In the end, the race to finish the 2023 campaign in the No. 1 boys' slot was a closely fought affair, with Mexico’s Rodrigo Pacheco firmly in the running, although Fonseca ultimately prevailed.
"I am very proud of my junior career and it is an honour to be the first Brazilian ever to finish the year as the No. 1 in the world and receive the ITF World Champion award," said Fonseca, a Davis Cup Juniors champion with Brazil in 2022.
"We have had so many amazing players in juniors over the years. I hope to inspire the next generation and achieve all the amazing things that all the Brazilian legends achieved."
Fonseca's No. 1 status owes much to his US Open triumph at Flushing Meadows in September when he became the first Brazilian to win a Junior Grand Slam in five years – since Thiago Seyboth Wild in New York in 2018.
Fonseca has long since promised to make his mark on the Grand Slam stage and he finally did so this year after recovering from a set down to dispatch Learner Tien of the United States in the final.
It was the culmination of an incredibly consistent Junior Grand Slam season, with Fonseca reaching the quarter-finals at the Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon – showing his versatility and quality on all surfaces.
Hopes were high of success at Wimbledon after Fonseca topped the podium at the traditional SW19 warm-up event – J300 Roehampton – as he defeated Bulgaria’s Iliyan Radulov, a tenacious opponent, in the final.
Fonseca appeared well set for glory, which would have seen him become the first Brazilian junior – boy or girl – to conquer Wimbledon but he ran into home favourite and eventual champion Henry Searle in the last eight.
Silverware also narrowly eluded Fonseca at J500 Criciuma in March as he lost to Yaroslav Demin, who occupied No. 1 spot in the boys’ rankings for a period in 2023, in the final.
However, over the course of the season, Fonseca did enough to propel himself to the summit of the ITF World Tennis Tour boys’ rankings – and, crucially, to stay there. A season to remember, for sure.
"Everything happened so fast," he added. "At the beginning, I was fighting to get into the Grand Slams, and then I was able to play some professional tournaments in Brazil and even played my first ATP main draw in Rio.
"There were times when I felt like I was not giving my best, but then I was able to bounce back and win the US Open. I was very happy that I was able to achieve such an amazing feat. I raised my level there during the week and played my very best.
"2023 has been such an amazing year and I know that I have taken another step towards my pro career."