João Fonseca faces Czech to follow "fairy tale" at Roland Garros

The duel between João Fonseca and Jakub Mensik, this Tuesday (2), no earlier than 3:15 pm (GMT) in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros, in Paris, France, marks a renewal in tennis. The 19-year-old Brazilian will face a 20-year-old opponent in a duel in the semi-finals of the French Open.

The match will be the only one at night on the tournament's main court. The winner of the match will face whoever qualifies from the duel between Rafael Jódar and Alexander Zverev.

João and Jakub have already faced each other once. In 2024, at the Next Gen ATP Finals, the Brazilian beat the Czech by 3 sets to 2. The two would face each other at the ATP 500 in Basel, but Mensik lost by WO due to an injury.

Beating favorites
João Fonseca had, on the way to the quarter-finals, the biggest victories of his career so far. The Brazilian beat Novak Djokovic, holder of several records and greatest Grand Slam champion among men, in the tournament campaign.

João also beat top seed Casper Ruud. The other wins were over Luka Pavlovic and Dino Prizmic.

Jakub Mensik also went through better-rated names for the title to reach the Brazilian's path. The Czech overcame Russian Andrey Rublev and Australian Alex de Minaur. Both with more experience and above him, Jakub, in the ATP rankings.

"Fairy tale"
João experiences, in France, the "most magical" tournament of his career, despite having already won two titles (ATP 250 in Buenos Aires/2025 and ATP 500 in Basel/2025). The good results in one of the most traditional tournaments of the year corroborate this achievement.

The highlight was the comeback victory against Novak Djokovic. The triumph against Casper Ruud, with Guga in the audience, increased public perception of the best tournament played so far in the Brazilian's brief career.

Dangerous opponent
João has an advantage in direct confrontation, but Jakub has a greater title on his resume. The Czech beat Novak Djokovic in the Masters 1000 final in Miami, in 2025.

The other title in his career was the Auckland Open, in 2026, on a hard court. He also has a better position (27th) than João (30th) in the ATP rankings.

Djokovic says he wants to coach João Fonseca after he retires

Source: CNN