Eight of the world’s best 20-and-under players will be seen in action in just a few hours from now in Jeddah. There are quite a few exciting matchups lined up on Day 1. One among them is the match between France’s Arthur Fils and Joao Fonseca (BRA). Fils reached the final of this tournament last year. However, he was defeated by Serbia’s Hamad Medjedovic in that match. So, he’ll be keen to make a strong comeback this season. On the other hand, Fonseca is all set to make history in Jeddah by becoming the first Brazilian to compete in this tournament. It’s like a dream come true moment for this 18-year-old rising star. Can he make a winning start to his campaign, though?

Arthur Fils vs Joao Fonseca: Preview

Arthur Fils has been in red-hot form this season! He started his season reaching the QF in Hong Kong and after that, he made it to the semis in Auckland. Fils won three titles this season and the first one came at the Challenger Bordeaux, FR where he defeated Spain’s Pedro Martinez in two sets. After that, came the biggest surprise of the season! We saw Arthur Fils taking down the world number 2, Alexander Zverev by 6-3,3-6,7-6(1) in the final of the German Open. Then the third one came at the Japan Open.

Joao Fonseca started his season by making a SF run at the Challenger Buenos Aires, AR. After that, his most notable performance came at the Rio Open where he reached the QF. In March, Joao Fonseca reached the final of the Challenger Asuncion, PY. Overall he has made quite a few long runs this season but the youngster is yet to win a title in 2024. He’s entering this match after losing his SF match against France’s Calvin Hemery in the Challenger Lyon, FR. Almost more than one month has passed since that loss, now it’ll be interesting to see if he can jump back to his winning tracks and make an impressive end to the 2024 season.

Fils vs Fonseca: Head-to-Head

Arthur Fils has faced Joao Fonseca only once in his career so far, and guess what? It wasn’t a memorable experience for the Frenchman! He was defeated by the young Brazilian in that contest.

• 2024 Rio de Janeiro R32: Fonseca 6-0,6-4.

Prediction: Fils to win in straight sets

Arthur Fils is entering Jeddah at a career-high PIF ATP Ranking of number 20! He has had an outstanding season this year. If we take a glimpse at his records this season, the Frenchman notched quite a few Top 20 wins this season. However, his performance against Zverev stands tall among the rest. Arthur Fils has a win-loss record of 37-25 this season while it’s just 7-7 on the main Tour for Joao Fonseca.

Now, if we take a look at their playing styles, Arthur Fils is a powerful player who loves using his serve and forehand to quickly finish points. He has hit 364 aces this season and committed just 198 double faults! Fils loves playing an aggressive brand of tennis, so Fonseca will always have to be on his toes in this exciting contest. A little lapse of concentration can change the course of the match. Apart from this, Arthur Fils has now also added a fair bit of finesse to his game. So, it’ll be interesting to see how he approaches this game against a relatively inexperienced campaigner like Joao Fonseca.

The Brazilian on the other hand also has an aggressive style of play. He has a good forehand which can be very penetrating at times and he can also hit it with heavy spin. Fonseca can also generate a decent amount of power and spin with his backhands. It’ll be key for Joao Fonseca to get a grip on this match right from the word ‘go’. If he manages to do that then, he surely has the potential to throw a challenge at Arthur Fils. Else it’d be a cakewalk for the Frenchman!

However, here’s an interesting fact featuring these two tennis stars Do you know both Arthur Fils and Joao Fonseca are huge fans of Roger Federer? Both of them have idolized the ‘Swiss Maestro’ while growing up. So, it’s gonna be a battle between two Federer fans! Talking about results, Fils looks like the favorite in this contest at the moment!