The Rio Open, one of three ATP Tour tennis events last week, concluded on Sunday with an all-Argentina final as Sebastian Baez beat Mariano Navone 6-2, 6-1. It was the fifth career victory for Baez, a surprise winner in a relatively loaded field. Let’s take a look back at the Rio Open recap with some insight into the performance of Baez and other top seeds, an event loaded with surprises in the scores and odds.
Baez Beats Navone
Baez is off to a strong start to his season. He lost in the Round of 32 at the Australian Open to eventual champion Jannik Sinner and has since reached the semi-finals and quarter-finals at the Cordoba Open and Argentina Open, respectively. He wasn’t among the favorites in the Rio Open predictions, but the draw broke his way with some of the top seeds losing early and he took care of business along the way.
Baez, the fifth seed in tennis odds for the Rio Open, began the tournament with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Corentin Moutet. He then beat Facundo Diaz Acosta 7-6 (1), 6-3 and needed three sets to beat Thiago Monteiro in the quarter-finals. He dominated fourth seed Francisco Cerundolo 7-5, 6-0 in the semi-final and continued to dominate in the final against Navone, a 22-year-old qualifier. His tennis stats for the match included two aces, winning 67 percent of points on second serve, and going 6-of-14 in breakpoint opportunities.
Navone, meanwhile, was a surprise finalist. He won his three qualifying matches and, most notably, beat second seed Cameron Norrie in the semi-final 6-4, 6-2. He also had a straight-sets victory over Yannick Hanfmann.
Alcaraz Out Early in Rio
In other news for the Rio Open recap, Carlos Alcaraz, a two-time grand slam winner and the top seed in the tournament, retired in the first set during his first-round match against Monteiro. Alcaraz played just two games in the match before leaving with a right ankle injury. The injury isn’t expected to be too serious, however, as Alcaraz said he expects to be ready to defend his title at Indian Wells in March.
First-Round Upsets for Young Stars
Nicolas Jarry, who begins his attempt at defending his title at the Chile Open this week in his home country, had a disappointing result in the Rio Open recap. Jarry, who also reached the final of the Argentina Open a week ago, lost in the first round to Hanfmann 1-6, 6-1, 5-7. He was the third seed in the tournament.
Jarry wasn’t the only of the top-eight seeds to lose in the opening round at the Rio Open. Arthur Fils, an up-and-coming French player, continued his early season struggles with a first-round loss to Brazilian wildcard Joao Fonseca, who made the quarter-final before losing to Navone. Eighth seed Sebastian Ofner also lost his first-round match in straight sets to Jaume Munar.
This Week on the ATP Tour
It’s another busy week, with some interesting Tennis odds at BetUS on the ATP Tour from February 26 to March 3 with three events, including the ATP 500 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. This event features top seeds Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Karen Khachanov, Ugo Humbert, and Hubert Hurkacz. Medvedev is the defending champion and takes on fellow Russian Alexander Shevchenko in the first round.
The Chile Open also takes place this week in Santiago and features many of the same players who participated in the Rio Open. The Round of 32 begins Monday. Jarry, the defending champion and top seed, is one of four players to receive a bye into the second round.
The Abierto Mexicano Telcel, also known as the Mexican Open, is also taking place this week and features top American players Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe, and Ben Shelton. Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas are among the other notable players in the draw.
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