Madrid (Spain) – After becoming the youngest person to win a Masters 1000 game since 2018, João Fonseca from Rio de Janeiro saw his campaign in Madrid end this Saturday, in the second round. The British Cameron Norrie was the tormentor of the 17-year-old tennis player, triumphing in straight sets, with the final score of 6/1 and 6/4, in just 68 minutes of play.
Classified for the third round for the third year in a row, seed 29 Norrie will face the winner of the match between Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic and Norwegian Casper Ruud, fifth seeded, who is in great shape after making the final at the Masters 1000 in Monte Carlo and win the title at the ATP 500 in Barcelona.
Betting more on consistency, Norrie ended the game with fewer winning balls than the promising Brazilian (10 to 15), but also made fewer unforced errors (11 to 15). The British left-hander’s serve made the difference, with 76% success compared to just 59% for Fonseca, who didn’t convert a single break chance and missed three of the five break points he faced.
Currently occupying 242nd place in the rankings, the best of his career so far, Fonseca will take a good leap forward with his solitary victory in the competition, provisionally rising to 225th place on the next ATP list. The Rio native appears in the top 100 of the season’s race, rising to 97th and remains firmly sixth in the fight for a place in the Next Gen Finals.
I start much lower than Fonseca
Fonseca started well in the match and confirmed his first service game with authority, but from then on he played a very rushed set, made eight unforced errors, many of them from the baseline, and only had four winners. Norrie made virtually no mistakes, scored two breaks in a row and took just 20 minutes to take a 1-0 lead.
Greater balance in the second set
Less eager on the court, the young man from Rio started to work more on his points in the second half, while his serve earned him some more relaxed points. On the other side, Norrie maintained consistency and withstood heavy ball exchanges, moved well to both sides and even delivered some very well-placed short shots.
The game became more even, the definition only came in the final stretch and in the details. Norrie managed to press in the ninth game, had three break-points and in the third got the advantage. Then, Fonseca fought to avoid elimination, he had four chances to break the deficit, but he didn’t take advantage of them and saw the Brit seal the victory on the second match point he had.
