Argentinian Tomás Etcheverry wins two three-set matches in one day. A long road to his first ATP title.
Argentinian tennis pro Tomás Etcheverry crowned a marathon day at the ATP tournament in Rio de Janeiro with his first tour title. The 26-year-old defeated Chilean Alejandro Tabilo 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 in the final – just a few hours after playing his semifinal match.
Because the semifinal matches scheduled for Saturday were interrupted by rain and postponed to Sunday, Etcheverry, like his opponent, had to play twice. His match against Vit Kopriva had been interrupted the day before at 4:5. In the afternoon, he lost the first set to the Czech, but then defeated the world number 87 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-4) after more than three and a half hours of play.
Etcheverry had to wait a long time for his final victory
In the final, Etcheverry fell behind again, trailing 1:3 in the second set, but fought his way into the tiebreak and won the match after 3:04 hours. “For me, this is a dream come true,” said Etcheverry.
“I’ve waited a long time for my first title. I’ve worked so hard with my team and I can hardly believe it.” In the final, he said he “tried to give 100 percent. It was the last match of the tournament, so I gave it my all – and in the end, I got the reward.”
For Etcheverry, it was his first title on the ATP Tour at the fourth attempt. He had previously lost in the finals in Santiago de Chile and Houston in 2023 and in Lyon in 2024. With this victory, the former world number 27 improves to 33rd in the new world rankings.
