Back injuries like the one that affects tennis player João Fonseca require special training planning in the “light and shadow” style, that is, alternating high loads and low loads with days without training. That’s what it says to Sheet Kevin Sims, head of physiotherapy at the Australian tennis federation, noting that he does not specifically refer to the Brazilian’s case, as he does not know the details.
“You need a very well-planned training program, so that you have days where you train intensely, but also recovery days. And it’s also important to have days where you don’t train at all,” said Tennis Australia’s national physiotherapy manager.
The 19-year-old Brazilian mentioned the back problem in an interview with the international press, given in English last week, in Australia, shortly after withdrawing from the Brisbane and Adelaide tournaments.
This Tuesday (20), the Brazilian was eliminated in the first round of the Australian Open by the North American Eliot Spizzirri by 3 sets to 1.
“I would say I needed more time […] I did my best. I think it’s bad that I didn’t play at 100%, but at the same time, it gives me the maturity to continue, to understand my body, to understand my limits”, said Fonseca after the match.
“It wasn’t the day. But I think I’m still confident, I’m still playing well. I’m having good training. I just need rhythm. I think this season will be great for me”, added the tennis player from Rio.
Although Fonseca and his staff gave few details about the back pain, an analysis carried out by the report, based on publicly released information, seems to confirm the need for careful management.
One of the leading experts on musculoskeletal disorders in tennis, Kevin Sims is looking out for his country’s players at the Australian Open. He is the author of an academic article about a case that resembles, in some aspects, that of Fonseca.
Titled “Rehabilitation of lumbar bone stress injuries in tennis players”, the work was published in 2024 in the scientific journal Aspetar Sports Medicine Journal. It deals with the case of a high-level tennis player, aged 18, unidentified, with severe back pain when serving and a history of a stress fracture in the lower back at the age of 13.
“What sometimes happens is that people don’t have a complete and adequate healing of the fracture, and then it can progress from one side to both sides, and you can have ongoing problems even as an adult. The ideal way to treat a stress fracture in a young person is to take time to allow it to really heal,” explains Sims.
Fonseca’s office states that the tennis player does not have any sequelae from the fracture.
According to Sims, a 19-year-old does not yet have the lumbar spine of an adult. “Bone strength doesn’t reach full levels until around age 22. There is still potential for strengthening.”
In the interview in Adelaide, Fonseca said verbatim: “I was born with something in my back, and sometimes it gets stiffer, and yes, I already had a stress fracture five years ago, but it’s something that will be in my body, so I need to deal with it. And yes, I’m just trying to recover as best I can. We had an MRI, and it’s nothing too serious, but it could get serious.”
Asked which specific shot makes his back feel, Fonseca specifically referred to his serve: “It’s more, I mean more rotation, but yes, serve, so yes, yesterday I practiced and I felt it a little bit, so yes, it’s just something we need to take care of.”
Given the repercussions, his advisor announced that he “was born with a straightened spine and suffered a stress fracture five years ago, when he was still young.”
According to the International Tennis Federation website, the Rio native was away from international tournaments between December 2020 and October 2021, which may correspond to the period of the aforementioned fracture.
In November 2021, when Fonseca won a junior tournament in Salvador, physiotherapist Duda Delorme, from Motus Reabilitação, in Rio de Janeiro, posted on Instagram: “He overcame countless adversities throughout the year with a lot of maturity and patience. Despite his young age, an example of commitment! Probably one of the most challenging and proportionally motivating cases I have ever come across.”
In August of this year, Delorme published: “About ten years ago, I received at @motus_reabilitacao a skinny, long-haired boy with a backwards cap, with some dysfunctions and a promising future in professional tennis. We experienced the most diverse experiences throughout this journey, from pain from a severely overworked body and some painful defeats to emblematic victories.”
Fonseca himself and people close to him commented on the post, thanking him for his work.
In the team that travels around the world with the Brazilian tennis player, physiotherapist Egídio Magalhães Jr. is a constant presence, often seen sitting in the box reserved for the team, alongside the coaches.
At the end of October, after the Masters 1000 in Paris, Fonseca announced that he would no longer play in 2025, due to low back pain. During one of the matches, he needed a back massage.
Before the Australian Open, he played just one exhibition match against the Spanish Carlos Alcaraz, number one in the world, in Miami, in December.
Chronic injuries have shortened or damaged the careers of great tennis players, such as Gustavo Kuerten (hip) and Argentine Juan Martín del Porto (wrist). Others, like Spain’s Rafael Nadal, managed pain throughout their careers.
Currently, a player from the same generation as Fonseca faces chronic back problems. Frenchman Arthur Fils, 21, suffered a stress fracture in his fifth lumbar vertebra last year. Fils’ family accused the French Tennis Federation of forcing him to play Roland Garros in June in pain, aggravating the injury.
The Frenchman, who was number 14 in the world rankings, fell to 42nd place. He withdrew from competing in the Australian Open.
