Tennis player João Fonseca, 19, officially starts this weekend, against the American Eliot Spizzirri (89th in the ATP rankings, the association of professional tennis players), the 2026 season under the shadow of suspicion due to an uncomfortable chronic problem in the lower back.
Currently 29th in the rankings, the Brazilian will have the challenge of overcoming his period of inactivity at the Australian Open, the tournament that catapulted him onto the international scene last year. He debuted by defeating Russian Andrei Rublev, number 9 in the world at the time.
The match against Spizzirri will still have its time confirmed by the organization, but will take place on the second day of disputes, Monday (19) in Australia. This round will start in Brasília time on Sunday night (18), at 9 pm.
Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia already has a time for her debut: 9pm (Brasília time) on Saturday (17th), against Kazakh Yulia Putintseva. The tournament will be shown on ESPN and its streaming platform, Disney+
In João’s case, according to Luís Stival, “the big question is how he will be, considering that he withdrew from two tournaments”. “His technical phase is very good, his potential is gigantic, and his projection for the year is even better. I believe he will fight, at least, for the top 15 in 2026”, he told Sheet the CazéTV commentator and responsible for the YouTube channel Tênis Além do Óbvio.
The injury that even put Fonseca’s participation in the Grand Slam at risk led the player to withdraw from the ATP 250 in Brisbane and Adelaide, also on Australian soil, in addition to causing him to be absent from the squad list for Brazil’s duel against Canada, for the Davis Cup.
The problem called “rectified spine” by experts is not new for the athlete, detected when he was a teenager. In a recent interview, the tennis player made statements that worried fans, stating that he was born with “something on his back” and that “sometimes the region becomes more rigid.”
“Every high-performance player has injuries and pushes his body to the limit all year round. In João’s case, what worries me is the fact that he debuts in a best of five sets, his body is always very sore. The good thing is that his playing pattern requires less rhythm than other tennis players, those who are consistent, because he has power, he has serve and he can define points more quickly”, said Ricardo Accioly, aka Pardal, former coach of Fernando Meligeni and Marcelo Rivers.
Pardal also pointed out the fact that high-performance players have greater resilience to withstand pain, recalling the last title won by Pete Sampras at Wimbledon, in 2000.
“Sampras’s physiotherapist, a personal friend of mine, says that he blew out his calf in the second round. Even so, he continued. He played the games and was off the entire time. He became champion without even doing light training”, recalled Accioly.
In an interview with the English newspaper The Guardian, João Fonseca said he was feeling better, but cited the need for care: “I need to respect my body and make the right decision because I have a long career ahead of me.”
“I believe that, if he is registered for the Australian Open, he is certainly 100% capable of playing in the tournament. Otherwise, his team, which is very professional, would not take the risk”, said Patrícia Medrado, former tennis player, the Brazilian with the longest time in the top 100 of the WTA (the association of professional tennis players).
“It wasn’t a very long break either. Nowadays, with a lot of strengthening, care and, above all, good career management, this won’t get in the way. There are several examples of athletes with chronic injuries, who lived with pain: Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Del Potro… In the past, there was Stan Smith, who changed his serving style because of an elbow problem. The point is to make the best choices”, added Medrado.
Opening opponent, Spizzirri recently reached the top 100 and has already crossed Fonseca’s path in 2024. The North American got the better of the occasion, in a match valid for the third round of the US Open “qualifying” – the American won by 2 sets to 1: 7/6 (8), 6/7 (5) and 6/4.
The 24-year-old has competed in two tournaments this season. In Brisbane, he ended up being eliminated in qualifying by Frenchman Quentin Halys. In Auckland, he had important victories over Argentine Juan Manuel Cerúndolo and Portuguese Nuno Borges. He was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Hungarian Fabian Marozsan.
“Spizzirri is a constant player, physically very strong. He’s what we call a ‘pace absorber’, the opponent who knows how to absorb impacts, who plays well with the weight of the ball coming. This is a style of play that João doesn’t usually have difficulties with. But, as he doesn’t have that much pace, if the game drags on to the physical field, it could be a problem”, analyzed Stival.
If he advances in the tournament, Fonseca, seeded in a Slam for the first time in his career, will have in the second round the winner of the game between Italian Luca Nardi (108th) and a player coming from qualifying. Then, in the third phase, you will meet the Italian Jannik Sinner, number two in the world.
“The possibility scares me, but Sinner scares anyone because he has a stratospheric level of tennis, he is the current two-time champion of the tournament and is undefeated. On the other hand, it is something that João wants and desires in his core. The tennis world would stop to watch”, said Stival.
In a recent interview with Sheetformer tennis player Thomaz Bellucci assessed that Fonseca already had the technical level to face names like Sinner, Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz, against whom he played in December during an exhibition event in Miami.
Bia Haddad debuts against Kazakh
Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia will take the court in the first wave of main draw matches, at 9pm (Brasília time) on Saturday (17). Current number 59 in the world, she will face off against Kazakh Yulia Putintseva, 105th in the rankings. The game opens the schedule on court 6.
