The qualifier, who reached his first grand slam main draw, faces ninth seed Andrey Rublev in the opening round

Endless queues outside Melbourne Park's 1573 Arena on a sunny Thursday afternoon gave casual fans the impression that a Grand Slam champion was in action, but a quick peek inside revealed the carnival atmosphere and explained the interest.

Fonseca was part of the 2024 lineup alongside Fils and Luca Van Assche of France; Michelsen, eventual finalist Learner Tien and Nishesh Basavareddy of the U.S.; Jakub Mensik of the Czech Republic and Shang Juncheng of China, who also goes by his Americanized name, Jerry Shang.

João Fonseca has definitively introduced himself to the world as the latest teen sensation in men’s tennis by upsetting No. 9 seed Andrey Rublev 7-6 (1), 6-3, 7-6 (5) in the first round of the Australian Open.

Joao Fonseca definitively introduced himself to the world as the latest teen sensation in men's tennis on Tuesday night, upsetting No. 9 seed Andrey Rublev 7-6 (1), 6-3, 7-6 (5) in the first round of the Australian Open.