The tennis world has found a replacement for Djokovic, Federer and Nadal. What you need to know

A new "big three" is forming in tennis. Legendary players Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal can be replaced by young and talented Joao Fonseca, Carlos Alcaraz and Yannick Sinner. Alcaraz and Sinner, the first and second rackets of the world, have 10 Grand Slam tournament wins between them. 19-year—old Fonseca, a new star in the tennis world, is rapidly catching up with them. How his powerful forehand became one of the most exciting sights in men's tennis is described in the Izvestia article.

How Fonseca became a tennis sensation

Brazilian Fonseca started playing tennis at the age of four. During training, he was impatient, he tried to execute every shot as powerfully as possible, and when he was a spectator, he could not watch a single match to the end. 2019 was a turning point for Fonseca, as he watched the match between Djokovic and Federer in the Wimbledon final, which lasted 4 hours and 57 minutes and became the longest in the history of the tournament.

Fonseca is a long—time Federer fan. They had never played against each other, but they had met at the Laver Cup. Fonseca then called Federer a "super charming guy" and said that this meeting was a very "important moment" for him, which will remain in his memory for the rest of his life.

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• At the age of 17, after reaching the quarterfinals of the Rio de Janeiro tournament, Fonseca decided to give up his studies at the University of Virginia and devote himself entirely to tennis. Last year, he won the Next Gen ATP Finals tournament, which features the world's strongest players under the age of 20. In January, Fonseca beat Russian Andrey Rublev in three sets at the Australian Open. His game became a real sensation — the tennis player's career reached a new level, even though he did not win the tournament.

• A month after competing in Australia, Fonseca won the Buenos Aires tournament, making him the second youngest South American to win the ATP title since the beginning of the Open Era in tennis.

• In October, the tennis player scored another victory at the ATP 500 tournament in Basel, Switzerland. There Fonseca defeated Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokin in the final. This achievement made the Brazilian the third youngest winner of the tournament after Jim Currier in 1989.

• Observers note that Fonseca's matches are among the most "high—profile". No matter where he plays — in Brazil or abroad — the audience in yellow and green is always present and actively supports the athlete. The tennis player himself says it took him a while to get used to such a noisy crowd.

Why is he called the new Djokovic

• The comparison with Djokovic haunts Fonseca constantly. After losing in Basel, Davidovich Fokina said that the Brazilian had shown incredible tennis and would definitely become the next Djokovic to defeat both Alcaraz and Sinner. Rick McKee, former coach of Serena Williams, shares the same opinion. He called Fonseca "the talent of the generation" and predicted his success, comparable to the achievements of the Italian Sinner and the Spaniard Alcaraz. According to McKee, these players will make up the "new big three" that will replace Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. Fonseca's rise is reminiscent to many of how Djokovic rapidly reached the top during the era of Federer and Nadal confrontation.

• Fonseca's talent was recognized by Djokovic himself. He once said that the Brazilian's playing reminded him of his own. Djokovic also attended Fonseca's match with Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas at the 2025 Davis Cup in Athens (Fonseca won this meeting).

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• In one of the promo videos released by the US Open, Djokovic answers Fonseca's question about what he plans to do after retiring from tennis. Djokovic, known for his support of young players, jokingly said he was going to coach Fonseca and urged him to prepare financially for it.

What awaits Fonseca

• According to experts, Fonseca was able to win the ATP titles this year thanks to his incredible striking power — few can match him in this, especially when playing forehand. So, the average speed of his forehand in Basel was 130 km/h. For comparison, the top players have an average of 120 km/h.

• In fact, Fonseca's progress is not growing exponentially. This year, he did not go beyond the third round in any of the Grand Slam tournaments, which caused some surprise after the results he showed at the beginning of the season. But the victory in Basel confirmed his status as one of the most explosive talents in tennis — Fonseca has risen 18 places in the ATP rankings and now occupies the 24th position. This dynamic will allow him to realize his plans for next year — the tennis player himself said that he was going to be among the 32 seeded players at the grand slams.

• Experts believe that Fonseca has a great future ahead of him: he is gradually gaining experience in matches with the best players in the world, but has not yet met either 22-year-old Alcaraz or 24-year-old Sinner. At the same time, Fonseca himself speaks highly of these tennis players, noting that their game is amazing. But Fonseca's dream is to play with Djokovic. He hopes to do this before the 38-year-old Serb retires.