Van de Zandschulp Secures Thrilling Upset Over Fonseca in Brussels
Hometown Heroes Bailly and Collignon Celebrate Success
October 14, 2025
Image Credit: Jasper Jacobs/Getty Images
Botic van de Zandschulp boosts his record to 13-1 after a spectacular first set in 2025.
By Jerome Coombe
In an electrifying encounter at the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open on Tuesday, Botic van de Zandschulp triumphed over Joao Fonseca, marking the latter’s first match as a seeded player on the ATP Tour with a scoreline of 7-5, 7-6(2).
The Dutch ace fought back from a break down in both sets, delivering an impressive performance with a total of 32 winners compared to Fonseca’s 22. This victory also put an end to Van de Zandschulp’s five-match losing streak at the tour level. He dominated the serve game, winning a remarkable 88% (42/48) of his first-serve points, as per Infosys ATP Stats, in a match that lasted two hours and two minutes.
“I played a fantastic match and served incredibly well. My return was solid at crucial moments,” shared Van de Zandschulp. “The key to my victory was maintaining my focus during the critical points.”
Notably, Van de Zandschulp had not secured a tour-level victory since the Winston-Salem final back in August. The World No. 86, now accompanied by a new coach this week, will next face American qualifier Eliot Spizzirri, who convincingly defeated Pedro Martinez 6-4, 6-1 earlier.
“We kicked off our work together this week. We’ve had some practice sessions, but this is our first tournament. I’m really enjoying it… It’s been different this year, but I’m having a great time this week, which is good,” he added.
On Day 2 in Brussels, Belgian qualifier Gilles Arnaud Bailly celebrated his inaugural ATP Tour victory, overcoming Daniel Altmaier in a heart-pounding match that finished 6-4, 6-7(10), 6-3. This win propelled the 20-year-old five spaces up to 10th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, with a chance to reach eighth if he defeats third seed and last year’s finalist, Jiri Lehecka, in the next round.
Belgian brilliance in Brussels 🤩🇧🇪
[Q] Bailly secures his first-ever ATP Tour victory 6-4 6-7(10) 6-3 🆚 Altmaier@BNPPFEUOpen | #BNPPFEuropeanOpen pic.twitter.com/xSaEb4qqoF— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 14, 2025
Wild card Raphael Collignon also secured his debut win on home turf, narrowly defeating compatriot and eighth seed Zizou Bergs with scores of 6-4, 7-6(5) in an exciting all-Belgian matchup. This triumph elevated the 23-year-old seven places to No. 83 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, just shy of his career-best of No. 81.
Don’t miss Collignon’s thrilling victory over Bergs:
Having reached the third round at this year’s US Open, Collignon will next challenge Francisco Comesana, who advanced past home favorite and 2016 semi-finalist David Goffin with a score of 7-6(5), 6-4.
The French duo composed of Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and Valentin Royer also progressed to the second round on Tuesday, with Mpetshi Perricard defeating Emil Ruusuvuori 7-6(4), 6-7(5), 6-4, maintaining his perfect 3-0 record in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series, while lucky loser Royer overwhelmed Sebastian Baez 6-2, 6-3.
