Joao Fonseca moves into Basel quarter-final after Jakub Mensik withdraws

Joao Fonseca will play in the quarter-finals of an ATP 500 tournament after Jakub Mensik withdrew from the 2025 Swiss Indoors in Basel.

Fonseca and Mensik both had challenging first-round opponents in Basel. While the Brazilian teenager took on big-serving Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who was actually the defending champion, Mesik played against Henry Bernet.

Fonseca won his match in two sets, 7-6(6), 6-3, while the Czech player needed three sets to win 7-6(1), 6-7(9), 6-3. After the match, Mensik didn't suggest any discomfort, as he praised his 18-year-old opponent, who received a wild card to compete in Basel.

However, shortly ahead of the second-round meeting with Fonseca, Mensik announced his withdrawal. The Czech player cited a left foot injury as a reason for his withdrawal.

Mensik was among the players who could have qualified for the 2025 ATP Finals in Turin. He wasn't one of the favorites, quite the opposite, it was a long shot for him to get among the eight best players.

However, he had a theoretical chance if he managed to win titles in Basel and at the Paris Masters, but with his withdrawal from the ATP 500 event in Switzerland, that chance now disappeared.

Only a few weeks ago, Fonseca surprised his fans when he withdrew from the Shanghai Masters and explained that the withdrawal was made so he could better prepare for the European indoor hardcourt season.

Two players outside the Top 50 played the Shanghai Masters final, so the withdrawal might have felt as a missed chance for the Brazilian teenager, but he will now have a chance to prove that his decision was the right one.

After losing in the opening round of the European Open in Brussels, Fonseca will now play in the quarter-finals, and his chance of reaching the semi-finals will be quite solid. His opponent will be the winner of the match between Denis Shapovalov and Valentin Royer, and both could be playable opponents for him.

Should he get past that hurdle, making it even further isn't out of the question either. Ben Shelton is the highest-seeded player in Fonseca's half of the draw, and the American has returned from an injury lay-off only recently, so he's far from his top form.