Rocked by the support of the fans who filled the Guga Kuerten Court, at the Jockey Club in Rio de Janeiro, João Fonseca and Marcelo Melo came from behind, but managed to come back against the European pair formed by the German Constantin Frantzen and the Dutch Robin Haase to win the doubles title at the Rio Open, the main ATP tennis tournament in South America.
The splits were 4/6, 6/3 and 10/8, in 1h33 from the start. The decisive point that sealed the victory came with an ace from Fonseca in the ‘super tie-break’.
For their triumph in the final, the Brazilian duo takes home a prize worth US$ 151.7 thousand (R$ 790 thousand). The runners-up are entitled to US$80,900 (R$420,000).
One of the main doubles players in the history of Brazilian tennis, Melo reaches his second title at the Rio Open. In 2025, he had already won alongside Rafael Matos.
Former leader of the world ranking and current 59th in the world, the 42-year-old tennis player from Minas Gerais reaches his 41st career title in doubles. Among his biggest victories, Melo won two Grand Slam titles, Roland Garros, in 2015, and Wimbledon, in 2017.
João Fonseca, in turn, eliminated in the singles group in the round of 16, achieved his first career title in doubles at the age of 19.
