Top seed Diego Schwartzman completed a dream week at the Argentina Open with a 6-1, 6-2 victory against qualifier Francisco Cerundolo on Sunday to claim his long-awaited first ATP Tour title on home soil.
The Buenos Aires native had previously reached two finals in Argentina, including one here at the ‘Cathedral of Argentine Tennis’ in 2019, but he had yet to taste victory at home. Schwartzman was in control from start to finish on Sunday and ended Cerundolo’s run in one hour and 21 minutes to seal his fourth ATP Tour title.
“I’m very, very happy, it’s been an amazing week for me,” Schwartzman said in the trophy presentation. “It’s the first time that [I have won at] home. Two years ago, I reached the final here and lost… I was very unhappy, but two years later I have my revenge against Francisco, who is a great player.”
Francisco Cerundolo: ‘Seeing My Brother Win Was Very Motivating’
Last week, his opponent Cerundolo’s younger brother, 19-year-old Juan Manuel Cerundolo, turned heads with his own title-winning run at the Cordoba Open. Francisco was trying to replicate his run after qualifying in Buenos Aires, but he ran up against a rock-solid top seed and World No. 9 in the final.
After playing five three-set matches in one week, Cerundolo’s fatigue was evident from the start and Schwartzman wasted no time in testing his legs. He broke the Cerundolo serve six times, and stayed aggressive from the baseline as he marched to victory.
“[Cerundolo] had a spectacular week, I’ve been following him since he qualified and we’ve had great conversations and talked about his matches,” Schwartzman said. “I also know his whole family, they were there at the same club where I started playing tennis before [Francisco] was born… This was his week, last week was [Juan Manuel’s] week.”
With the triumph, Schwartzman became the first Argentine champion in Buenos Aires since 2008, when David Nalbandian won another all-Argentine final against Jose Acasuso.