Joao Fonseca becomes youngest Brazilian man to reach semifinals of an ATP event in Open Era

Joao Fonseca defeated Argentine Mariano Navone for his first tour-level semi-final.

By securing a spot in the last four of the Argentina Open, Joao Fonseca has become the youngest Brazilian man to reach the last four at an ATP event in the Open Era. Thiago Seyboth Wild (19) previously held the record at the Chile Open in 2020, which he eventually won as a wildcard.    

The 18-year-old Brazilian displayed remarkable grit against home favourite Mariano Navone, saving two match points in the third set to make his maiden semi-final appearance. Fonseca reached the last eight twice last season — the first in Rio de Janeiro last February and then in Bucharest in April.

Fonseca kept his cool to pull off a 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 triumph as he saw off two match points and Navone to seal a two-hour, 53-minute victory in Buenos Aires. The young Brazilian clawed back from a one-set deficit after losing serve twice in the second set at 3-2 and 4-3.

The Brazilian overcame No. #8 seed Tomas Martín Etcheverry in the opening round and Federico Coria in the second round, both Argentinians, before moving past Navone to book a spot in the semi-final. 

João Fonseca becomes the youngest Brazilian man to reach an ATP semifinal in the Open Era. 18 years old. But he has the bravery & mindset of a future legend.🇧🇷💛🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/afwdvcAJv3

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) February 14, 2025

The Rio native and youngest player in the ATP Top 100 will now face unseeded Croatian Laslo Djere for a chance to progress. Should he reach the title round, Francisco Cerundolo could become the fourth Argentine Fonseca faces this week. Fonseca broke into the top 100 in January and is already up to No. #82 in the live rankings. Should he lift his maiden ATP trophy in Buenos Aires, he will breach the top #70.  

Fonseca is turning heads with solid performances on tour. Recently, he won the 2024 Next Gen ATP Finals in Riyadh with an undefeated debut run. He will next be seen in action on home turf at the Rio Open, where Fonseca will have his sights on giving the home crowd their first local champion.

He is one of four Brazilians in the main draw entry list, along with Thiago Seyboth Wild, Felipe Meligeni Alves and Thiago Monteiro.

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