Roland Garros: Fonseca beats Ruud after Djokovic, Zverev into last eight
Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca, who knocked out Novak Djokovic in the third round, beat Casper Ruud to reach his first Grand Slam quarterfinal.
- Joao Fonseca followed his sensational third-round win over Novak Djokovic by beating Casper Ruud as well.
- The Brazilian won 7-5, 7-6(8), 5-7, 6-2 to reach his first Grand Slam quarterfinal.
- Alexander Zverev, Jakub Mensik and Felix Auger-Aliassime also advanced.
- Djokovic's loss to Fonseca was his first Grand Slam exit after leading two sets to love since 2010.
The Court Philippe-Chatrier crowd already knew what it was watching, long before Casper Ruud lifted his racket for the customary salute. Three days earlier the same court had seen Novak Djokovic carried out of the draw, and now some twenty thousand people were waiting to find out whether the kid from Rio de Janeiro could absorb a second blow too. Joao Fonseca answered them in the best possible way, calmly, as if he had spent his whole life on clay.
The 19-year-old Brazilian beat the Norwegian veteran 7-5, 7-6(8), 5-7, 6-2 and reached a Grand Slam quarterfinal for the first time in his career. What sounded like an upset a week ago is starting to look like a direction. Fonseca is not playing in Paris like a guest, he is playing like someone who came to stay.
How did the Brazilian break Ruud?
The second set told the whole story in miniature. Ruud held a set point in the tie-break, led, and looked ready to drag the match back to level, but Fonseca snuffed it out at 8 in the breaker and tore away his rival’s psychological footing. The Brazilian’s forehand, the same one that dismantled Djokovic, this time worked the depth and pushed the experienced Norwegian further and further behind the baseline.
Ruud rallied in the third set, taking it 7-5 and showing why he is a two-time finalist here, but in the fourth he ran out of legs and ideas. Fonseca closed that stretch without any drama, 6-2, as if he were simply waiting for his opponent to fade. By results, this is his second big scalp in a row:
- Third round: knocked out Novak Djokovic, Novak’s first Grand Slam loss after leading two sets to love since 2010.
- Fourth round: beat Casper Ruud 7-5, 7-6(8), 5-7, 6-2.
- First Grand Slam quarterfinal of his career.
This is just the beginning for me, I try to play every match like I have nothing to lose, Fonseca said on court after the win, with the crowd chanting his name.
Who is waiting for him in the top half of the draw?
Fonseca is not the only one to book a place in the last eight. Alexander Zverev came through after beating young Spaniard Rafael Jodar, one of the pleasant surprises of the Paris fortnight. The German remains one of the main title contenders and will be glad to see his road to the final open up against unburdened opponents.
Alongside Zverev, Czech Jakub Mensik and Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime also reached the quarterfinals, with Auger-Aliassime going this deep on the Roland Garros clay for the first time in his career. The generation pushed for years as the future of tennis is suddenly the present, and Fonseca is its loudest voice.
Will the Brazilian carry the pressure that comes with being the sensation of the tournament, or will the top half of the draw finally stop him?
