In an introductory game that could have come at a later time and at a later stage, Joao Fonseca could not miss the chance to show off his development in the game as he rushed to beat world no. 9 Andrey Rublev, cruising through the first round of the Australian Open and making his presence known now more than ever.

Earning victory on his major main draw debut, the Brazilian youngster managed to deliver an upset win against Rublev in straight sets, 7-6 (1), 6-3, 7-6 (5). Fonseca also continues a promising winning streak dating back to December 2024, where he emerged victorious in the Next Gen ATP Finals and later won the ATP Challenger Tour crown in Canberra in early January.

Fans at the Margaret Court Arena were left in shock and awe as the world no. 112 made sure that he would be remembered. Fonseca was drilling one point after another as he made it look easy off both wings while outplaying his 27-year-old opponent, showing how much he has improved in just a short span of time.

A Win to Remember

The rising star from Brazil showed his high level of confidence and has successfully managed to use the hype surrounding him to further elevate his games. Suffice to say, Fonseca did not let up and made sure that he could come up with bigger performances when it mattered most – and it did pay off.

“I just enjoyed every moment on this amazing court, it’s my first time playing in a huge stadium,” Fonseca said. “I want to thank this amazing crowd. There are some Brazilians here... a lot of Brazilians here cheering for me!

Fonseca made use of his backhand most of the time to dictate the pace and used his forehand to clap back on Rublev’s high momentum swings. He struck with promising consistency as he fired a total of 51 winners on all areas of the court, forcing Rublev to chase balls from many sides in a match that lasted two hours and 20 minutes.

“I was trying to not put pressure on myself, playing with a Top 10 guy in a huge stadium,” Fonseca said. “Iwas trying to call the crowd to help me. I just enjoyed playing my game. That’s one thing about myself, is that I play better in the important points, I go for my shots. That was the difference today.”

A Story of Upsets

Fonseca started out the year 2024 as the world no. 730 in the ATP Rankings. In a full year, he ended up inside the top 150, thanks to promising campaigns in the ATP 500 in Rio de Janeiro and ATP 250 in Bucharest, where he both reached the quarterfinal stages. Now he is up to no. 98 overall in the live rankings.

This is the first time that Rublev suffered a tough first-round exit in the Australian Open since 2019, and he is the second top 10 player to exit the AO after Grigor Dimitrov had to retire on Monday. Other massive upsets seen across the Australian Open include Nick Kyrgios, who was a hometown favorite – having been defeated by Jacob Fearnley in the first round as well.

Daniil Medvedev survived a scare in the first round as well, narrowly beating world No. 418 Kasidit Samrej in what could have been a historic upset in the Australian Open as of the time of writing.