João Fonseca will no longer compete in the ATP 250 in Brisbane, Australia. The 19-year-old from Rio, currently number 24 in the world, began to feel pain in his back during training on Saturday and withdrew from participating in what would be his first tournament in the 2026 season. He would debut in the tournament against the American Reilly Opelka, ranked #52, this Monday (local time).
The tennis player has already undergone an MRI, which found an injury to the lower back that was not considered serious by the medical team. For now, Fonseca will continue training in Brisbane. His participation in the ATP 250 in Adelaide, next week, is still uncertain. The event, scheduled to start on the 12th, is the only chance for the Brazilian to compete and gain pace before the Australian Open, which will begin on the 18th.
Without playing this week, Fonseca runs a small risk of not being seeded at the Australian Open. He will lose 125 points in the world rankings this Monday (January 5) – equivalent to the Canberra Challenger title won in the same period last year. Thus, you will have 1,510 points, which would place you, according to today’s ranking (January 4), in 30th place.
