Facundo Díaz Acosta caused the first big shock of the 24th edition of the ATP 250 in Buenos Aires. The left-handed player, number 87 in the world ranking, defeated Francisco Cerúndolo (22nd; fourth seed) by 7-6 (7-3) and 6-0, in 1h38m, and advanced to the quarterfinals of an ATP Tour for the second time (he had achieved it last week, at the Córdoba Open ). His next rival will be the Serbian Dusan Lajovic (58th), who in the round of 8 defeated Alejandro Tabilo (Chile, 54th).
The public that populated the stands of the central court of the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club enjoyed the personality and high level demonstrated by Díaz Acosta, the player who made an impact during the distressing confinement due to the pandemic, in August 2020, when he was seen rallying against a mattress placed in a small space at the entrance to his house in La Lucila. Díaz Acosta recorded an ace, committed two double faults, achieved 64% of first serves, won 63% of points with the first serve (27 of 43) and the same percentage with the second (15 of 24). In addition, he broke the service of the eldest of the Cerúndolo brothers on five occasions.
However, the public that attended the National Tennis Cathedral was also perplexed and disappointed by the poor level shown by Cerúndolo, the best Argentine in the world ranking. Francisco, who had also lost last week in his debut at the Córdoba Open (against the Spaniard Jaume Munar), was unstable and irritable (he smashed a racket when he lost serve in the first game of the second set). .
With two wins and six losses, His start to the season is far from the expectations created. It was striking that Kevin Konfederak and Nicolás Pastor, his two coaches, were not in the corner where his people were located. Franco Davín, who joined the team at the end of last year as a sort of consultant, would accompany him in Indian Wells.
This is how Díaz Acosta closed the match
It is totally unusual to see Cerúndolo losing a set 6-0. The last – and only time in an ATP main draw – had been in the round of 16 at Queen’s (on grass) 2018, when the British Ryan Peniston triumphed 6-0, 4-6 and 6-4.
“Yes, yes, I was a little surprised by the second set. The first one not so much. He had more responsibility. I had started very well, but I made some mistakes. In the second set I started very well too. I was surprised to have made such a difference. He became a little more annoying, I tried not to think about it so much because sometimes you get nervous,” said Díaz Acosta, trained by Mariano Monachesi.
“You could say it is the best moment of my career. The ranking says it too, the results… This year I started very well, in a tournament prior to Australia (Adelaide) I passed the qualification, in the Australian Open I lost in five sets with (Taylor) Fritz, I have been feeling very good , very happy. You always want more and I hope this is not the best moment of my career and there is more. I finished well last year, I had a good preseason and I gained confidence to start this season, I was settling into the level of this category,” analyzed Díaz Acosta.
And he continued the evaluation of what he saw in Cerúndolo: “Playing against better-ranked rivals makes me more focused. It was a good first set for both of us. Maybe he doesn’t have the best start of the year, not having won the first set frustrated him a little, you could notice his low mood. Tennis-wise in the first set he did well, he is a great player. I imagine it is something more emotional, trustworthy. What I felt was that in the second set I stayed on top, I maintained my emotional state and that’s how I made the difference.”
“What did I change to have this level? “I’m enjoying it more,” he admitted. I faced life without everything being tennis. Enjoy my family a little more, watch my friends play soccer, any plan that isn’t tennis, go out on a Friday, have a quiet drink. This preseason we did something different in preparation, like not giving so much interest to tennis and preparing more physically. Because if your body is prepared, your head can handle you more. “These are things that go hand in hand.”
Etcheverry, devastating
In addition to Facundo Díaz Acosta, another Argentine name confirmed in the quarterfinals of the Argentina Open is Tomás Martín Etcheverry, after a convincing victory over Colombian Daniel Elahí Galán 6-3 and 6-0. Located in 27th place in the world ranking, the player from La Plata needed one hour and 22 minutes to defeat Galán (80th) in the match that opened the round of 16 at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club.
Etcheverry, 24 years old, once again settled among the top eight of the tournament as he had done in 2023, and will play his next match on Friday against the winner of the match that was played that night by the Chilean Nicolás Jarry (21st), third seed. series, and the Swiss Stan Wawrinka (60°). ”I played a great game. Here in Buenos Aires it motivates me a lot, playing in front of my people is something beautiful, I feel extra energy and it shows, reaching the quarterfinals again makes me happy,” highlighted the man from La Plata.
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