Tennis, especially the ATP side of the sport, is suffering from mass losses of high-end players this year. Carlos Alcaraz hasn't played since March, and Jannik Sinner has only played one event (Wimbledon) since the French Open before the US Open, and that is if he actually plays in New York.
Unfortunately for Joao Fonseca, he is joining a list that includes Alcaraz, Sinner, Jack Draper, and others of having to miss events altogether or withdraw after one has started. Fonseca will miss the rest of the Cincinnati Open with an abdominal issue.
The hope is that the rising Brazilian star will be able to return for the US Open, but that is in doubt. The final major of the year begins in less than two weeks. Abdominal injuries don't fade away easily. The hope is that Fonseca withdrew from Cincinnati simply to give himself more rest before the Grand Slam in New York.
Joao Fonseca follows same sad path as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner
His announcement of his withdrawal included "I felt slight discomfort on the left side," so while he is missing the rest of the Masters 1000, at least he said his issue was "slight." That makes it seem as if his not playing in Ohio the rest of the way is more of a precaution.
Tennis can't really afford any more young players getting injured and missing significant time. 2026 has been a weird year because of that. Alexander Zverev, at least, has benefited from all the injury problems as he won the first major of his career. He might have won the French Open either way, but let's not kid ourselves that his not playing Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner didn't change things.
As for Joao Fonseca, he hasn't yet reached the level of the three players mentioned in the previous paragraph. He certainly could, as he moves around the court well, has excellent groundstrokes, and an improving serve. He is still only 19 years old (he turned 20 on August 21).
His best performance at any major so far is reaching the quarterfinals of the French Open this year, and his best result at a 1000 event is reaching the 2026 Monte-Carlo Masters. While both of his best results came on clay, he is better statistically on hard courts (a .575 winning percentage on clay and .667 on hard surfaces).
With good health, he might make a run at the US Open, but he sadly followed a trend set by many this year. At this point, Fonseca's availability for New York is in question, too.
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