Buenos Aires (AFP) – Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca on Saturday became the youngest clay-court finalist since Carlos Alcaraz in 2021 when he reached the championship match at the Argentina Open. The 18-year-old overcame Laslo Djere of Serbia 7-6 (7/3), 5-7, 6-1 in a dramatic semi-final where he held his nerve having seen a match point saved by his experienced opponent in the ninth game of the second set.
“Really special. Today was really difficult, against a really good player. He went through qualifying, so he’s playing amazing tennis,” said Fonseca. “We already knew how Laslo can play. So, I played my best. Today was with my heart. Today was with pain. And we got through. There is one match to go, so let’s go for it.”
The 99th-ranked Fonseca has made his maiden final the hard way — in Friday’s quarter-finals he saved two match points to defeat Mariano Navone in a match six minutes shy of three hours.
In Sunday’s final, he will face fifth seed Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo, who stunned world number two Alexander Zverev in the last eight and beat Spain’s Pedro Martinez 6-2, 6-4 in the semi-finals.
If he wins the final, Fonseca will emulate Alcaraz, who was also 18 when he captured his maiden ATP Tour title at Umag in 2021.
© 2024 AFP
