Joao Fonseca backed up Novak Djokovic upset with a four-set win against two-time Roland Garros finalist Casper Ruud in the fourth round of the French Open on Sunday. The Brazilian registered a 7-5, 7-6(8), 5-7, 6-2 win to reach the quarter-finals at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time.
The 19-year-old admitted it was a tough game for him as the Norwegian has a good record on clay.
“It was tough,” Fonseca said in his on-court interview. “Casper plays good here. He’s a very experienced guy and he knows how to play here in this amazing court. He has two finals, so it was tough in the beginning, but I played really good in the important moments in the first and second set. I was very happy because of that.”
Both players fought tooth and nail as they smashed 51 winners and produced 52 unforced errors. However, it was Fonseca who had the final laugh after three-hours and 55-minutes.
Meanwhile, Brazilian icon and three-time Roland Garros titlist Gustavo Kuerten watched Fonseca from the stands and the youngster was all praise for the legendary player.
“[He is] an idol for our sport and for our country,” Fonseca said of the watching Kuerten, a former No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings. “For his career, he is known for the way that he is and how humble he is. He was here for my first time at Roland Garros, my first match as a junior, and it’s a pleasure to have him here. It’s a pleasure to win against a very tough opponent in front of him, so I’m just very happy.”
On the other hand, Jakub Mensik defeated Andrey Rublev 6-3, 7-6(6), 4-6, 2-6, 6-3 to book his place in the last eight.
“I’m super happy with the performance, even if Andrey, [who is] a great, great guy, great fighter, showed that,” Mensik said in his post-match press conference. “Basically, after being two sets to love down, he came back, and he really played unbelievable tennis, made so many great shots. The momentum was on his side.
“So it was super difficult for me, even if I was [two sets] up, I felt in some moments that I’m actually losing. I’m just happy that in the fifth set I came back and took the momentum back on my side and basically finished the match how I finished it.”
Fonseca and Mensik will face each other in the quarterfinals on Tuesday.
