Novak Djokovic names two rising stars to watch beyond Joao Fonseca: ‘They’re as good as him’

Novak Djokovic, former World No. 1 and 24-time Grand Slam champion, has highlighted two rising stars beyond Joao Fonseca while discussing the next generation.

 

Novak Djokovic during the 2025 Miami Open © Al Bello/Getty ImagesNovak Djokovic during the 2025 Miami Open

Brazilian rising talent Joao Fonseca has quickly gained a fierce following after his good results at the ATP Tour. The 18-year-old, who won the US Open juniors title, defeated Andrey Rublev at the Australian Open, and won his first title at the 2025 Argentina Open. However, Novak Djokovic believes that there are other two stars that could join the Brazilian in the upcoming years.

During the 2025 Miami Open, Djokovic was asked about Fonseca. “He’s a very good tennis player. I mean, so young. Just incredible firepower from both ends of the baseline, serve. He’s a very complete player,” he praised the Brazilian talent.

“He’s a very exciting player to watch, but he’s not the only one,” Djokovic added. “You have [Jakub] Mensik. Maybe because people talk about Fonseca so much, they forgot about Mensik. [Learner] Tien, as well,” the Serbian star said.

“All those players are very young, but they have as good of rankings as he does. They’re as good as him,” he stated. “I think it’s exciting, I don’t know what I should call it — that generation, the new generation is bringing. It’s always great that you have exciting players to watch and see the players that have potential to reach the greatest heights and to carry this sport.”

Joao Fonseca celebrates during the 2025 Miami Open (Rich Storry/Getty Images)

Joao Fonseca celebrates during the 2025 Miami Open (Rich Storry/Getty Images)

“Obviously, Sinner and Alcaraz are the leaders of today, still very young. But then these guys, it seems like they’re knocking on the door of Sinner, Alcaraz in the years to come,” Djokovic prophesied.

Who is Jakub Mensik?

Jakub Menšík is a rising Czech tennis player who has quickly gained attention for his powerful game. Born in September 2005, he made headlines by reaching the third round of the 2023 US Open at just 17 years old. He has registered wins over players like Felix Auger-Aliassime, Andrey Rublev and Grigor Dimitrov. Last year, he became the youngest quarterfinalist at the Paris Masters.

L-R: Jakub Mensik and Learner Tien ( Carmen Mandato/Rich Storry/Getty Images)

L-R: Jakub Mensik and Learner Tien ( Carmen Mandato/Rich Storry/Getty Images)

Who is Learner Tien?

Learner Tien was also born in 2005. He gained recognition after winning the USTA Boys’ 18s National Championship in 2022, which earned him a wild card into the US Open main draw. This year at the Australian Open, he upset Daniil Medvedev and reached the fourth round, being the youngest player to do so since Rafael Nadal. He lost to Fonseca in the first round of the Miami Open.