Djokovic: Fonseca 'talk of the Tour' after impressing in Miami

Fonseca is making his first appearance at the Miami Open and has reached the third round, where he is due to face Alex de Minaur on Monday.

His straight-sets win over 19th seed Ugo Humbert on Saturday saw him become the youngest player to reach a Masters 1000 third round since Carlos Alcaraz in Paris in 2021 (also 18).

Among those with five or more matches on the surface since 2020, Fonseca (6-4) is now the only South American with a winning record on hard court at ATP level - excluding the ATP NextGen Finals.

Djokovic, who earned a record 411th win at such events on Sunday, was full of praise for the teenager, noting what makes him special.

"He's been [the] talk of the Tour in the last several months. I mean, deservedly so," Djokovic said.

"He's a very good tennis player. I mean, so young. Just incredible firepower from both ends of the baseline, serve [as well]. He's a very complete player.

"Of course, what is impressive is the way he strikes the ball, but even more so is how he handles the nerves on the court for someone that doesn't have experience at all playing at the highest level."

Born for the biggest stages ‍Joao Fonseca becomes the youngest man to reach an ATP Masters 1000 third round since Carlos Alcaraz, 18, at Paris 2021! @MiamiOpen | #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/jHG94Mhbwn

— ATP Tour (@atptour) March 22, 2025

Fonseca captured his first tour-level title in Buenos Aires last month, becoming the youngest South American champion in the history of the ATP Tour (since 1990) at 18 years old.

Djokovic also noted the breadth of talent among Fonseca's peers, saying he is excited to see what the next generation can achieve.

Learner Tien, who was knocked out in Miami by Fonseca, has impressed in 2025, reaching the fourth round of the Australian Open, knocking out Daniil Medvedev along the way, while also beating world number two Alexander Zverev on his way to the Mexican Open quarter-finals.

Djokovic also highlighted Jakub Mensik, who is also into the third round of the Miami Open after beating Indian Wells champion Jack Draper in the last round.

"He's [Fonseca] a very exciting player to watch, but he's not the only one," Djokovic said.

"You have Mensik. Maybe because people talk about Fonseca so much, they forgot about Mensik.

"Tien, as well. All those players are very young, but they have as good of a ranking as he does. They're as good as him.

"I think it's exciting. I don't know what I should call it - that generation, the new generation is bringing it. It's always great that you have exciting players to watch and see the players that have the potential to reach the greatest heights and to carry this sport."