The Argentinian Tomas Etcheverry defeated the English in straight sets Cameron Norrie and qualified for the semifinals of the ATP 500 de Barcelona, which is disputed on brick dust. The player from La Plata, number 30 in the world ranking and seeded number 13 in the tournament, was more effective in the decisive points and ended up winning by 7-6 (7-4) y 7-6 (7-1) in a match that was characterized by parity. Etcheverry’s rival will be the Norwegian Casper Ruud, who left the Italian behind Matteo Arnaldi (executioner of also Argentine Marco Trungelliti) by 6-4 and 6-3.
“It was a match that was decided in the tie-break, I played very good tennis, I had chances (we both had, actually) to break, but we got away with our serves. I think the key was playing very good and very aggressive tennis in the tie-breaks,” said the Argentine after the victory, and already installed among the best four players in the tournament. “I played aggressively”, the man from La Plata insisted. And he added: “We talked about that with my coach (Walter Grinovero) and with my team: we had to be aggressive. The last time I played with him [por Norrie] It was last year in Buenos Aires, and it was a long game, more than three hours. I think today the key was the tie-break”, he completed. ““I worked hard to get back to being at the highest level and I am very happy to be able to do it.”the Argentine was happy.
Despite having gone down three positions In recent weeks, it is a good start to the season for the Argentine tennis player, who last February achieved the best ranking of his entire career: he was 27th in the world. The match against Norrie had only one precedent: the 2023 Buenos Aires ATP quarterfinals, resolved in favor of the British in three sets. Etcheverry, then, was looking for revenge in a match that anticipated rallies from the back of the field and a resolution due to details. No beatings or zero definitions. The good news for Etcheverry is that progress to the semi-final guarantees him at least rising to 26th place in the ranking, with the possibility of reaching 21st. place on the ladder.
The point that the match gave Tomás Etcheverry against Cameron Norrie
That’s exactly what happened, because although Etcheverry started with a break in the first game, Norrie tied with his in the fourth. The set then went to a tie-break. And there the Argentine’s temperance prevailed, as he managed to close the sleeve, leaving his rival with just four points (7-4) and took the lead on the scoreboard.
The second set maintained the same tone, but the Argentine took control of the initiative and changed the pace when he needed to accelerate and win important points. Between two great players from the back of the court, any advance to the net is almost a disruption. An act of rebellion. The Argentine’s greater ambition was rewarded: he took control of the set at all times. If he did not define it before the tie-break it was because Norrie, like Rafael Nadal, clung to his chances and defended with everything when he found himself against the ropes: he kept his serve while 3-4, 4-5 y 5-6. In the tie-break, however, he ran out of fuel and strength: Etcheverry immediately found a mini-break with his return and everything was uphill for the British, who even protested a point considered bad by the Chair judge when I had to change sides. It was a gesture of annoyance.
The statistics show the extreme parity between both: Just one place separates them in the ranking (the Englishman is 31st; the Argentinean, 30th). Although the Englishman had one more winner than the Argentine, he ended up capitulating thanks, in part, to the seven more unforced errors he committed. The Argentine’s consistency throughout the match placed him in the first ATP 500 semi-final of his entire career, and the fifth in total since he became a professional (Santiago 2023, Houston 2023, Kitzbuhel 2023, Houston 2024 and Barcelona 2024). Until now, in addition, he had only reached the quarterfinals of an ATP 500 once: It had been in the 2023 Basel tournament, where he lost to the Dane Holger Rune.