A sequence between João Fonseca against Thiago Monteiro, at the Rio Open, was chosen as the play of the month by the Association of Professional Tennis Players (ATP). The move occurred during the Brazilian’s debut in the biggest tennis competition in Latin America, which took place on February 17th.
In that game, João managed to beat his compatriot by 2 sets to 0, with scores of 7/6 and 6/1. The play in question occurred in the sixth game of the second set. When the 19-year-old and the 28-year-old experienced team staged a rally.
On Monteiro’s serve, João returned it well and they began an intense exchange of balls. That’s when Thiago decided to go to the net to surprise Fonseca. But, possessing one of the best forehands on the circuit, João found a forehand of rare happiness and secured the point.
After winning this game, João calmly secured victory on Rio soil.
Check out the shot 👀 |
— ATP Tour (@atptour)
João Fonseca in 2026
The award also serves to mark the month of March as decisive in the 2026 season. This is because he managed to recover his good form after great participation in the Masters 1000 in , where he stopped in the round of 16, defeated only by Jannik Sinner.
At the Rio Open itself, where he was eliminated in the next round, he still managed to perform at a high level by winning the doubles category, alongside Marcelo Melo.
Now João is preparing to compete in the Miami Masters 1000, which will start next Thursday (19).
