Iga Swiatek sends message to ATP Next Gen Finals champ & fellow On partner Joao Fonseca after Brazilian conquers Jeddah title
Iga Swiatek has come forward to congratulate Joao Fonseca on his triumph at the ATP Next Gen Finals. The Brazilian rising star crowned a fantastic debut season with a strong finish at the Finals in Jeddah.
Playing against some of the best young players, Fonseca utterly dominated the event to win the trophy, and it clearly caught the eye of Swiatek, whom many consider the top player on the women's side of the sport. She shared a picture of him with the trophy and a caption that read "Congratulations."
Fonseca's stay in Jeddah was superb as the Brazilian won the event without too many problems. He first remained undefeated in the group play, winning all three matches. Then he won the semi-final and final to remain undefeated at the event en route to the trophy. It was a fantastic performance in the final against Learner Tien that sealed the deal, and it clearly caught the eye of Iga Swiatek.
There isn't much tennis played these days, and with her suspension, the Polish player likely has a bit more free time at this stage of the year, so she caught up with some tennis.
The connection between them is through their sponsor, On, which is a Roger Federer-backed Swiss brand that has been slowly making moves in the world of tennis. Besides Swiatek and Fonseca, they're also the sponsor of Ben Shelton, who wears their gear as well. Swiatek even tagged On in the post.
Swiatek and Fonseca's Rafael Nadal connection
Besides the sponsor connection, there is also another one, and that is their love for Rafael Nadal. Swiatek is very public about her fandom for Nadal as she grew up idolizing him.
Similar to her, Fonseca also grew up idolizing Nadal, and he even watched him from the stands as a kid. It happened back in 2014 when Fonseca was only 7 years old and Nadal was competing at the Rio Open.
That moment was immortalized with a photo, and another one was immortalized in Jeddah during Fonseca's appearance there. Rafael Nadal watched the Brazilian play and win the trophy as the Spaniard attended the event as part of his deal with the Saudi Tennis Federation and his ambassadorship.
They even did a feature together for the ATP where Nadal spoke to Fonseca and some other players ahead of their event. That moment was credited by the Brazilian as inspiring after his semi-final victory.