Fonseca v Federer v Nadal v Djokovic v Sinner v Alcaraz at 18 – Who comes out on top?
Joao Fonseca has lit a spark within men’s tennis in 2025, collecting his first top-10 victory at the Australian Open before claiming his first ATP title in Buenos Aires.
However, how does he compare with the likes of Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner at 18-and-a-half years old?
Below, we compare the six players across four categories: ATP ranking, top-20 victories, ATP titles, and Challenger titles.
ATP Ranking
Joao Fonseca – The Brazilian has made a sharp rise in the rankings, ranked outside of the world’s top 150 on his 18th birthday, and is now ranked as the world No 60.
Rafael Nadal – Ranked as the world No 51, the 22-time Grand Slam champion was firmly on the rise, despite having missed most of his beloved clay season.
Novak Djokovic – The Serb, at Fonseca’s age, was positioned as the world No 78 thanks to two third-round appearances at Grand Slam level.
Roger Federer – Ranked inside the world’s top 50, the Swiss would enter the 21st century firmly on his way to greater heights.
Carlos Alcaraz – Thanks to a sensational run to the 2021 US Open quarter-finals, Alcaraz placed himself as the world No 32 and was now, crucially, guaranteed a seeding for the Grand Slams.
Jannik Sinner – The Italian was ranked as the world No 73, unable to rise further at the time due to the tour hiatus as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Top-20 victories
Joao Fonseca – 3
Rafael Nadal – 7
Novak Djokovic – 1
Roger Federer – 4
Carlos Alcaraz – 4
Jannik Sinner – 6
ATP Titles
Joao Fonseca – 1 – The Brazilian won his sole title at the ATP 250 event in Buenos Aires.
Rafael Nadal – 1 – Nadal defeated Jose Acasuso in the final of the Sopot event in 2004, his only title at Fonseca’s age.
Novak Djokovic – 0 – Djokovic had yet to win an ATP title.
Roger Federer – 0 – The Swiss had yet to win an ATP title.
Carlos Alcaraz – 1 – Alcaraz was victorious over Richard Gasquet in the final of the ATP 250 event in Umag.
Jannik Siner – 0 – The Italian had yet to win an ATP title.
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Challenger Titles
Joao Fonseca – 3 – Fonseca has won the Challenger events in Lexington, Canberra, and, most recently, Phoenix.
Rafael Nadal – 2 – The Spaniard was the third-youngest player to win two titles on the Challenger tour, lifting the trophy in Seville and El Espinar at barely 17-years-old, before moving his focus to the professional tour.
Novak Djokovic – 3 – Djokovic collected a trio of Challenger titles, with his final one arriving in a final against Francesco Aldi at the San Remo Tennis Cup.
Carlos Alcaraz – 4 – The four-time Grand Slam champion leads the pack in this category, winning four Challenger titles. Ironically enough, his first match was against a 17-year-old Jannik Sinner, becoming the first player born in 2003 to play a Challenger match.
Jannik Sinner – 3 – Sinner made his Challenger debut at age 17 in Bergamo, sensationally winning the event and becoming the youngest Italian to win an event of that category.
