Joao Fonseca said he felt ‘angry’ after exiting the Madrid Masters to 11th seed Tommy Paul.
Brazil’s highest-ranked player on the men’s Tour pushed world No.12 Paul in two close sets before losing 7-6(9), 7-6(3), in a match that ended after midnight. It was the first time Fonseca had played a top 20 player on the clay and the seventh time overall. His six previous encounters were on hardcourts with him winning three of those.
Against Paul, the 18-year-old had 11 break point opportunities but only managed to convert one of them, which was midway through the second set. He had multiple set points during the opening tiebreaker and when he was leading 5-4 in the second set. Known for his powerful ball striking, Fonseca at times struggled to keep his power under control which contributed to a costly unforced error tally of 37.
“It was a difficult match, I had many opportunities, but I couldn’t take them. I had many break points, some of which he played well, to his credit and some to my disadvantage,” Fonseca said afterward.
“I failed a lot at important moments, I was impatient, and that keeps me going. Obviously I’m angry after the match because I had opportunities, I had chances to win, I had chances to close out the first set, but I ended up not being able to. I have to move on to the next tournament, prepare myself and go all out.”
Fonseca is currently the youngest player in the top 100 on the PIF ATP rankings. He has a win-loss record of 10-6 so far this season, winning his first title in Buenos Aires in February. He has also won another title on the lower-level Challenger Tour at a tournament in Phoenix, USA.
Next week Fonseca will return to the Challenger Tour once again after accepting a late wildcard into the Estoril Open which will be elevated back to an ATP Tour event in 2026.
Meanwhile, Paul will next play Karen Khachanov in Madrid. He is one of six American men to make it through to the third round this year.
“I thought the level was awesome from the jump. He (Fonseca) really had me on my toes,” Paul said of his latest match.
“He was in every single one of my service games in the first set and he was pushing the pressure in the match very well. I was happy to get through those service games. My serve bailed me out quite a bit in the first set.”
27-year-old Paul is a former French Open junior champion but is yet to win an ATP title on clay.
