Tennis’ offseason exhibition tour continued Monday night in Miami, where Carlos Alcaraz defeated Joao Fonseca 7-5, 2-6, 10-8. Alcaraz trailed 5-0 in the match tiebreak before storming back to victory.
WTA stars Amanda Anisimova and Jessica Pegula also participated. Anisimova had the upper hand over her compatriot in straight sets before Pegula and Alcaraz teamed up to beat Anisimova and Fonseca 10-8 in a super tiebreak.
“It was really special to play with Joao,” Alcaraz said after the men’s singles match. “I’ve never played against him before, so that was a first time. And I’d never played in a baseball stadium before. It was really special to come back to Miami and play in front of these special people. They always bring a lot of energy.”
“I almost get it, guys,” Fonseca told the crowd. “It’s a pleasure to play here. It’s also a pleasure to play against Carlos and the mixed doubles.”
Alcaraz finished the 2025 campaign ranked No. 1 in the world. The Spaniard took first place at the Nitto ATP Finals, where he reached the final before falling to Jannik Sinner. At just 19 years old, Fonseca climbed to number 24 in the rankings last season.
“What Joao has done this year is impressive: he has reached the top 25 in his first full year of playing on the ATP Tour,” Alcaraz said during an interview before the event. “The question of whether he can reach the top ten, top five, top three will be very big for him.
“It’s one thing to reach that position and one thing to maintain your level in the coming season. I see Joao maintaining or even improving his level, so we will see in the next two years whether he will be able to break into the top ten, the top five. I think he has important and great things ahead of him.”
#Alcaraz #defeats #Fonseca #Miami #exhibition