Carlos Alcaraz’s Wimbledon journey continues this July, with the Spaniard attempting to win his third straight title.
Alcaraz, who recently won a blockbuster French Open final against Jannik Sinner, will equal Boris Becker’s total of three Wimbledon titles if he wins the men’s singles title again this summer.
The 22-year-old is still relatively young when considering the totality of a professional tennis career but this has not halted his unwavering progress on the ATP Tour.
In the coming months, there could be a new name that rises to the top of the ATP Tour. Young Brazilian star Joao Fonseca has been widely tipped to become the next elite player.
At the Australian Open in January, 18-year-old Fonseca shocked ninth seed Andrey Rublev to claim his first Grand Slam victory, winning 7-6 6-3 7-6.
Following the victory in Melbourne, Alcaraz offered his thoughts on the burgeoning superstar.
Carlos Alcaraz said Joao Fonseca would be ‘on the list of the best players in the world very soon’
Speaking at an Australian Open press conference in January, Alcaraz was asked for his thoughts on Fonseca after the Brazilian’s victory over Rublev.
He said: “I saw it, I saw a little bit. I couldn’t watch the whole match. I saw a little bit at the beginning and the end of the match.
What can I say about it? Just incredible.
“The way he played his first Grand Slam match against his first top 10 [player], it’s unbelievable the way he approached the match, the way he handles everything – the nerves, the match in general.
“It’s been fantastic. It’s someone that I have to be care(ful) of, let’s say. I have to see him, he’s going to be there.
“You know, it’s just the beginning of the year, just one win in [a] Grand Slam but he’s going to be there so we are going to put Joao Fonseca’s name on the list of the best players in the world very soon.”
Fonseca almost won his second-round match in Australia, but fell to Lorenzo Sonego in a five-set nailbiter, losing 7-6 3-6 1-6 6-3 3-6.
The 18-year-old added to his Grand Slam victories in May, beating former Wimbledon semi-finalist Hubert Hurkacz and Pierre-Hugues Herbert, before losing to Jack Draper.
Fonseca will look to win his first Wimbledon match on his main draw debut when he faces British star Jacob Fearnley in the first round at 2:10 pm on Monday. Fonseca will look to take inspiration from Alcaraz, with whom he completed a practice set on Saturday.
Joao Fonseca named Roger Federer as his idol
Following his gargantuan victory over Rublev in January, Fonseca said that his idol is Roger Federer. Fonseca also revealed his previously-held aspiration to emulate a part of Federer’s game.
In a press conference, he said: “My idol was always Roger [Federer].
“I grew up watching Roger. Of course, I think everyone wanted to play like him.
“But I even tried when I was younger the one-handed [backhand]. I just tried for like one week. Then I had something in my elbow and then I forgot [and said] ‘I’m going to go two-handed again.
“He is an idol for me and he inspires me.”
