Wednesday, February 5, 2025
HomeSportsNext Gen ATP Finals: Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca beats Learner Tien in...

Next Gen ATP Finals: Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca beats Learner Tien in Jeddah | Global News Avenue

Next Gen ATP Finals: Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca beats Learner Tien in Jeddah

Teenager Joao Fonseca defeated American rookie Tenn and became the second youngest winner of the Next Generation ATP Finals.

The 18-year-old Brazilian, the youngest and lowest-ranked player in this year’s tournament, defeated Tian An 2-4 4-3 (10-8) 4-0 4-2 in Jeddah.

In 2019, only Jannik Sinner captured the title at a younger age than Fonseca, who won the top-ranked 21-and-under men’s championship at the end of the season. All five games.

The two also met in the group stage on Thursday, and Fonseca, ranked 145th in the world, once again defeated his 19-year-old opponent.

The event adopts a best-of-five-game system, with four games winning by one set.

In addition to world number one Sinner, other former champions include four-time Grand Slam winner Carlos Alcaraz and world number 11 Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Tiann started well and won the first set in Saudi Arabia. But when Fonseca equalized after a tense second set that went into a long tie-break, he frustrated his opponent and sealed the title in the fourth set.

“I was really nervous before the game. I knew it was going to be difficult,” Fonseca said.

“I played against Lerner in the 2023 U.S. Open Junior final and I know the way he plays. He’s a great guy and a great player, so I knew it was going to be difficult, mentally and Physically. But I passed.”

Speaking before the final, Fonseca talked about how he emulated Sinner, whose hitting partner he was at last year’s ATP Finals, and said the Italian convinced him to turn professional.

RELATED ARTICLES

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Most Popular

Recent Comments