Jodar Beats Fonseca, Dream Run At Madrid Open Continues

Rafael Jodar
Rafael Jodar (photo: Mateo Villalba/MMO)

MADRID/WASHINGTON, April 27, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)

A new tennis rivalry was born at the Mutua Madrid Open Sunday night.

Their names are Rafael Jodar and Joao Fonseca. One was born in Madrid, host city of the prestigious ATP Masters 1000 event on red clay. The other is from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, who has quickly become the best player in his country.

Both Jodar and Fonseca are 19 years-old and, as they showed Sunday, each is wise beyond their years.

When the two young – and likable – competitors walked out on Manolo Santana Stadium at 10:45 p.m. Madrid time, the raucous crowd that filled the 12,500-seat show court at Caja Magica applauded both of them. The 42nd-ranked Jodar was introduced first, followed by the No. 27 seed Fonseca, who is ranked 31st. There were plenty of fans who were proudly waving colorful Spanish and Brazilian flags. 

Once they began play at 10:50 p.m., Fonseca delivered a huge, blistering first serve that produced a solid ace – the first of three he delivered on the night – and it was game on!

By the end of the two-hour, seven-minute three-set tussle – a match filled with huge egos among the two teenaged warriors – hometown hero Jodar celebrated with a 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-1 victory to advance against No. 66 Vit Kopriva of Czechia in the fourth round on Tuesday. A possible quarterfinal showdown with World No. 1 and top seed Jannik Sinner of Italy, who won his third-round match earlier in the day on the same show court Jodar beat Fonseca, looms later in the week.

A late-night thriller with plenty of drama

At the conclusion of the first set, which Jodar won 7-4 in a tie-breaker, the young Spaniard began to work the crowd. Upon securing the 55-minute opener, Jodar raised his arms in celebration to get the crowd fired up – to cheer a little bit louder. Then, he pumped his right fist in the air for extra effect. The mostly-Spanish crowd rewarded him with a standing ovation as he walked to his bench for a breather.

Next, Fonseca broke Jodar’s serve to open the second set and it proved the difference by the end of the set in the Brazilian’s favor. By this time, both players were dazzling in their display of shot making and baseline exchanges.

Then, early in the third set, Jodar broke Fonseca to go ahead 2-0, upon which the Brazilian uncharacteristically smashed his racquet – hitting it hard into the red clay three times. He was clearly frustrated that the match was slipping away from him. While Fonseca received a code violation for racquet abuse from the chair umpire, Manuel Messina, the damage had been done to Fonseca’s psyche by Jodar.

Soon, it would be a double break 4-0 lead and Jodar immediately consolidated the break for an insurmountable 5-0 advantage. It would take a Herculean effort by Fonseca to overturn the outcome. After the Brazilian held serve to avoid being handed a bagel by Jodar, it was up to the Spanish teenager to bring the night to a happy ending for hometown fans, just as he had on Friday after defeating World No. 8 and fifth seed Alex de Minaur of Australia for his first Top-10 triumph.

Serving for the match, Jodar won on his first match-point opportunity. He put away the victory with a third-shot, inside-out forehand winner that landed just inside the baseline. It was his 28th winner of the match – and the celebration was on for Jodar. Like a pair of other Spanish greats who have made history in Madrid over the years – Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz – Jodar yelled out “Vamos!” for all of Madrid to hear at 12:56 a.m., early Monday.

Jodar on Fonseca: “A very tough match”

The first edition of what no doubt will become an exciting rivalry for years to come had come to a close with Jodar the winner. He won 81 percent (46 of 57) of his first-serve points, saved five of seven break points, converted three of four break-point opportunities and outpointed Fonseca 92-87.

During his on-court interview, Jodar called his win over Fonseca “a very tough match.” The Spaniard added: “Joao is always a very tough player, so these matches are decided by very small details and various small points. I think I did a great job in those points, trying to play my game.

“I also want to congratulate him for the match and for the season. He’s doing an unbelievable job. Super happy with the win. Onto the next one.”

Jodar joined a select group after he became the eighth teenager to reach the fourth round in Madrid tournament history. It’s a list that includes Nadal and Alcaraz.

“I’m very, very happy with my level,” Jodar added. “I’ll just try to recover well and think about the next match.”

Jodar rises in the ATP Live Rankings

When Jodar faces Kopriva on Tuesday, he will be up eight spots in the PIF ATP Live Rankings to No. 34 – a pretty remarkable improvement considering that this time last year Jodar was ranked No. 687 in the world. 

In the past 12 months, Jodar turned pro after honing his skills at the University of Virginia in the United States, then won three ATP Challenger Tour titles and qualified for the Next Gen ATP Finals. Earlier this month, Jodar won his first ATP Tour title at Marrakech, Morocco, then was a semifinalist last week in Barcelona.

“Everything is happening very fast, I’m playing lots of tournaments and matches,” Jodar acknowledged Friday, after defeating de Minaur. “That’s allowing me to compete against many high-level players and improve my tennis. When you face these opponents, who are the best on tour, that’s when you really raise your level. Today my aim was to enjoy myself, because you don’t play against an opponent like Alex every day. In front of all the people who came to support me, I tried to savor the moment.”

Sunday’s Madrid Open results

Monday’s Madrid Open order of play

By the numbers

According to the ATP Tour, 19-year-old Rafael Jodar of Spain has become the eighth teenager to reach the round of 16 at the Madrid Open. They include: Rafael Nadal (2005), Novak Djokovic (2006), Andy Murray (2006), Juan Martin del Potro (2007), Denis Shapovalov (2018), Carlos Alcaraz (2022, 2023) and Jakub Mensik (2025). Like Jodar, all of the others were 19 years old, too, when they achieved their feat.

“Quotable …”

“Well I’m sure he’s gonna do great things. He’s a very young player, a great player. I wish him the best of luck for the rest of the season and his career. 

– Rafael Jodar of Spain, during his on-court interview after defeating Joao Fonseca of Brazil, giving props to the 19-year-old Brazilian star.

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