18-Year-Old Prodigy Fonseca Avoids Comparison To Brazilian Legend: 'I Want To Be Joao'
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Joao Fonseca is one of the most exciting talents on the ATP Tour, but the teenager is also an incredibly humble person.
Fonseca has been proving his talent for quite some time. Many hardcore fans witnessed his incredible qualities on the ATP Tour, and many got to know him when he won the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah last year.
This year, he introduced himself to even more fans when he stunned Andrey Rublev in the first round of the Australian Open. Now, the 18-year-old player will get a chance to play in front of fans in South America.
The Brazilian received a wild card for the Rio Open, which is his home event, and he also qualified for the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires. In the first round of the ATP 250 event in Buenos Aires, he outplayed Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-3, 6-3.
It was in Buenos Aires where the teenager also got a chance to speak to the reporters, as per ESPN. He admitted that since his stunning first-round win at the Australian Open, many more fans started to recognize him.
"I was in Brazil last week. I went out into the street and people stopped me to take photos. It's difficult, everything is very new. After Australia, I gained a lot of visibility, and I met more people. There are many new things abroad but not at home. I continue with the same objectives, wanting more and more and following my dream."
When tennis fans hear tennis and Brazil in one sentence, most of them think of Gustavo "Guga" Kuerten. The former Brazilian player won the French Open three times, and he's a tennis idol in South America.
However, despite being compared to Kuerten, Fonseca doesn't like these comparisons, even though he obviously sees them as a compliment. Instead of being the next someone, he wants to be himself.
"Guga is an idol for all Brazilian people, not just for tennis. He is a great person. Today they told me that he won the first edition here. I hope that in the future he can win it too."
"I don't like comparisons very much, everyone has their time and can make their own story. Some Brazilians say that I could be the 'next Guga', but I want to be Joao."
Fonseca also talked about dealing with fame. He suddenly became a superstar, not only in South America, but around the world. Still, he wants to stay humble, and prefers to do that on his own, without working with a psychologist.
"I don't have a psychologist. I already tried, but it didn't work. I didn't like it. Maybe in the future but now I don't want to, only if I need to. I think I have a good head to perceive everything that happens outside."
"In my career, everything happened very fast as a junior. I already passed my first year as a professional, I grew in the ranking and now I'm in the Top 100. I know that I have to be mature and humble, and work hard to keep growing more and more."
