The double special victory of Tomás Etcheverry: the most important of his career and dedicated to his deceased sister

Thomas Etcheverry reached the round of 16 Tel Aviv ATP with a 6-2, 6-7 (0) and 6-4 win against the Russian Aslan Karatsev, sixth favorite of the competition, doubly special. From a sporting point of view, because it was the most important victory of his career and the first against a top 50 (the native of Vladikavkaz is 39th). And from a personal point of view, because he made it at a very difficult time for him, days after the death of his sister Magalí.

“I would like to dedicate this victory to my sister, who I lost last Friday,” he revealed after celebrating, raising his eyes and arms to the sky.

“It is very special for me to be able to dedicate this victory to her,” he added excitedly in the interview on the pitch after the match, receiving the emotional support of the public who greeted him with a ranking. ovation.

The player from La Plata, 87th in the standings, arrived at the Israeli tournament with no experience on indoor hard courts. But he did not let himself be weighed down by the lack of shooting on this surface in the clash with Karatsev, champion last year on indoor hard courts in Moscow, and on paper he was on par with a superior rival.

Etcheverry also showed great mental tenacity, to keep his head in the game during the two hours and 41 minutes of play, especially considering the blow he received just a few days ago.

His next rival will be another Russian, Roman Safiullin104th in the world ranking, which beat the French 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 Hugo Grenier97 °.

Tommy23 years old, he is one of the players of the Next generation Argentina which has marked a qualitative leap this season.

In January it topped the rankings of the Australian Open and entered the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time; even if in Melbourne he could not get over his debut and fell into the hands of the Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta.

After going through the ocean tour and the South American clay tour (the round of 16 in Córdoba was his best result), he spent two unforgettable months at the challenger-tour. In March, in Chilean soil, he put together a semi-final in Santiago and a consecration in Concepción (it was his third title at this level, after those he won in 2021 in Perugia and Trieste). And in early April he reached the semifinal in Pereira, Colombia, and the final in Mexico, a result that allowed him to break through for the first time in the top 100 (he was 95th on 11 April).

That promotion in the ATP ranking opened the doors of the “greats” to him and he had the pleasure of entering directly into the main draw of Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open (in all he said goodbye in the first round).

While he continued to gain experience in the ATP Tour (after his stint in Paris he played in enough, gstaad, Oh my God, Los Cabos Y San Diego), continued to add points and wins on the challenger circuit. He reached the final in Perugia in June and played two more semifinals in August, first in Lima and then in Santo Domingo. Thus, on July 25 you reached your best ranking, the 72nd step.

Until this Tuesday, his best victory – if we talk about the rival’s ranking – had been obtained in the quarter-finals of the Challenger of Guayaquilin November last year, earlier Facundo Bagnithen 79th in the world.

in Tel Aviv, Etcheverry took first place against a top 50even if more than that statistic, it is worth the win against a rival with much more experience at the highest level (Karatsev owns three titles and reached the Australian semi-final in 2021) and in a very difficult time for him and his family.