Joao Fonseca is the talk of tennis after his incredible win against Andrey Rublev on his Grand Slam debut at the Australian Open – and it has edged him towards one of the first big rankings targets of his career.

Fonseca was part of the 2024 lineup alongside Fils and Luca Van Assche of France; Michelsen, eventual finalist Learner Tien and Nishesh Basavareddy of the U.S.; Jakub Mensik of the Czech Republic and Shang Juncheng of China, who also goes by his Americanized name, Jerry Shang.

In his first-ever Grand Slam match, Fonseca defeated World No. 9 Andrey Rublev in straight sets: 7-6 (1), 6-3, 7-6 (5). The match was evenly contested, but Fonseca was dominant with his power and agility.