Joao Fonseca has already progressed further at the Rio Open than last year, when he won a title in Buenos Aires and immediately lost to Alexandre Muller. Well rested this time after an immediate exit from the Buenos Aires ATP 250, Fonseca took care of Thiago Monteiro 7-6(1), 6-1 on Tuesday.
Next up for the 19-year-old on Thursday is a second-round showdown against Buse, who he has never played against.
Buse is a 21-year-old who has broken into the top 100 (currently 91st). He was a semi-finalist at Challenger level last season, but success on the main tour was fleeting. Five of Buse’s ten lifetime match victories have come in lower-level Davis Cup competition. Apart from a semi-final last summer in Gstaad (where he defeated no one ranked higher than 60th), the Peruvian has rarely been noticed at ATP level.
This is a big step forward in competition for Buse, who needed two hours and 40 minutes to get past world number 348 Igor Marcondes 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the first round in Rio de Janeiro. Now the underdog faces a superior opponent as well as a raucous Brazilian crowd that will eagerly erupt for Fonseca after facing a compatriot on Tuesday.
Choice: Fonseca in 2
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