Joao Fonseca picked up Team World’s only point on day one of the Laver Cup with his straight-sets victory over Flavio Cobolli.
After Casper Ruud’s opening triumph and Jakub Mensik’s win gave Team Europe a 2-0 lead, Fonseca came out on top against Cobolli, 6-4, 6-3, to get his side on the board.
The Brazilian was playing in his first-ever match at the Laver Cup, and produced a hard-hitting display against the Italian.
Fonseca’s performance impressed his team’s vice captain, Pat Rafter, who thinks the 19-year-old has a very bright future ahead of him.
Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images for Laver CupPat Rafter reacts to Joao Fonseca’s victory at the Laver Cup
When asked in his press conference to describe the young star’s debut win, Rafter said: “The words that come to mind, incredibly mature.
“A very good tennis brain. He’s calm. He’s open to suggestions. He’s open to learning. He’s quick to respond. He’s quick to learn.
“I see that side of him as such a mature part of the game that you can see what he’ll need to take forward.
“So in a year’s time, he’ll be a great player. In two years’ time, I think he’ll be exceptional, because he has the ability to learn,” predicted the Australian.
Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images for Laver Cup
“He wants to keep improving his game. We just saw what he can do out there, but he’s not there yet. You know, what I saw today was maturity.
“Today I was thinking, I hope he controls it. He just went out and played such a mature match. Cobolli threw everything at him.
“He moved very well. He made him play a lot of balls, and he withstood that for the whole two sets, and then he confused Cobolli. He just turned the match on him.
“That’s a sign of how powerful his game is and where it can go. He’s got to adapt to different surfaces, different speeds, and different balls, and not everything will suit him throughout his next couple of years, but he will learn.
“I have no problem with his ability to take all that information on. Just his career path, to me, I only see really good things.”
Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images for Laver CupThe order of play for day two at the 2025 Laver Cup
Alexander Zverev will look to build on Team Europe’s 3-1 lead in the opening match on day two of the Laver Cup against Team World’s Alex de Minaur.
The second contest of the day will see Holger Rune faced with Francisco Cerundolo, in what will mark their second career meeting.
In the night session, Carlos Alcaraz will play Taylor Fritz, before Ruud and Rune take on de Minaur and Alex Michelsen in doubles.
Each win on day two of the Laver Cup is worth two points.