Joao Fonseca has recorded some landmark achievements recently – and he may soon boast yet another impressive feat.
The 18-year-old underlined his growing reputation by winning his first ever ATP Tour title at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires on Sunday.
Despite being ranked 79 places below final opponent Francisco Cerundolo, Fonseca claimed a 6-4 7-6 (7) victory to take top prize, doing so in front of a raucous crowd.
His latest win was significant on several fronts, with the Brazilian becoming the youngest player from his country to win an ATP title.
Even more impressively, Fonseca is the fourth youngest man since 2000 to claim victory on the tour – after Kei Nishikori, Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz.
He is also the tenth youngest champion in ATP Tour history and the first player born in 2006 to win a title.
And Fonseca’s rapid rise in recent months means that he is now set to claim another age-related record, albeit away from the court.
The world number 68 is on course to become the fastest tennis player ever to reach one million followers on Instagram.
With 905,000 followers to his name at 18 years and six months old, Fonseca has four months left to reach the landmark figure in order to break the previous record set by Emma Raducanu.
British star Raducanu racked up the impressive number of followers at the age of 18 years and ten months.
The now 22-year-old experienced a surge in popularity online after her shock victory at the 2021 US Open, which saw her gain 1.4 million extra followers in the space of just two weeks.
Meanwhile Fonseca is also well on his way to beating one of his tour rivals to the social media feat.
Current French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz ranks just behind Raducanu on this list, having racked up one million Instagram followers at the age of 19.
The Spaniard’s breakthrough moment online came after his win at the 2022 Madrid Open, where he defeated Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal en route to glory.
In third place is US star Coco Gauff, who reached the milestone at 19 years and six months old, following her maiden Grand Slam title victory at the 2023 US Open.
Fonseca’s rising stock follows a breakthrough period for the teenager, who triumphed at the Next Gen ATP Finals at the end of 2024.
He then began the year with his best ever run at a major, stunning ninth seed Andrey Rublev in the first round of the Australian Open.
And it isn’t just on social media where world number three Carlos Alcaraz will be keeping an eye out for Fonseca’s progress, who heaped praise on the youngster following his victory in Buenos Aires.
Speaking on Monday, Alcaraz said: “I was watching the match. I think he played a great match, his first ATP final.
“It’s not easy to face an ATP final, and playing against Francisco Cerundolo in his hometown, I know it wasn’t easy.
“I think the level he played at was insane. I was just really happy about him playing and getting his first ATP title.
“His potential is huge. His level is really, really high. I saw a stat that at this part of the year last year, he was No. 660, and now he is No. 68. So, I’m pretty sure during the year he’s going to get higher.”
He added: “Potential No. 1? I don’t know. I think nobody knows that. I can say let’s see in the future, but he has potential; he has the level to get there or to fight for great things.
“So, I’m excited to see him in real life in a match. I’m excited to see if I’m going to play against him soon.”
