Carabelli Secures Argentine Win at Indian Wells, Navone Falls

Indian Wells, CA – Camilo Ugo Carabelli emerged as the sole Argentine victor in the initial round of the Masters 1000 de Indian Wells, overcoming American wildcard Martin Damm in a hard-fought match. The tournament marks the first Masters 1000 event of the season.

Carabelli Advances to Second Round

The world number 67 defeated Damm 7-6 (7-5) and 6-3 after one hour and 50 minutes of play. Carabelli will now face another American, Brandon Nakashima, in the second round.

Navone Eliminated in First Round

Mariano Navone, ranked 79th, was unable to overcome Marco Giron, who secured a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 victory in his debut match.

Match Details: Carabelli vs. Damm

Ugo Carabelli faced a challenging first set against Damm, who demonstrated aggression and net play. The set ultimately went to a tie-break, which Carabelli won 7-5.

“The world number 129 is charging up the rankings and reached the last four in Montpellier recently.”

thestatszone.com

In the second set, Carabelli improved his first serve effectiveness and played with greater freedom. Damm committed 16 unforced errors in the second set, totaling 45 for the match, but remained competitive until the eighth game. Carabelli broke to lead 5-3 and closed out the match on his second match point, saving a break point against him.

This victory marks Carabelli’s first since reaching the quarterfinals of the Argentina Open in February, following first-round losses in Rio de Janeiro and Santiago de Chile.

Giron Defeats Navone in Three Sets

Navone took an early lead but was unable to maintain it. He won the first set with two breaks and one against, but Giron recovered and ultimately prevailed.

Giron’s comeback was reportedly aided by the presence of mentor Andre Agassi in the stands.

Navone lost effectiveness with his serve, losing the second set 5-6 and falling behind early in the third set.

This marks the fifth time this season Navone has been eliminated in the first round of an ATP tournament, following defeats in Hong Kong, Auckland, Australia, and Rio de Janeiro.

Upcoming Argentine Matches

Four additional Argentine players are scheduled to compete on Thursday at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden:

• Sebastian Baez (53°) vs. Chun Hsin Tseng (144°)
• Juan Manuel Cerúndolo (70°) vs. Botic van de Zandschulp (59°)
• Francisco Comesaña (82nd) vs. Sebastian Korda (37°)

Francisco Cerúndolo and Tomas Etcheverry will begin play in the second round as seeded players.

Sierra to Represent Argentina in WTA 1000

Solana Sierra will be the sole Argentine representative in the concurrent WTA 1000 tournament, facing Peyton Stearns.

Schwartzman and Nalbandian Reconnect on Court

Former player Diego Schwartzman had an opportunity to practice with Grigor Dimitrov and his new coach, David Nalbandian. Schwartzman, now working with Tennis Australia, exchanged shots with Nalbandian, marking their first on-court interaction since their playing days.

“First step in the 🏜️

🇦🇷 @camilougo He beat the local Damm 7-6 (5) and 6-3 in his debut in Indian Wells and will face Nakashima in 2R @BNPPARIBASOPEN | #TennisParadise”

@ATPTour_ES on Twitter

Nalbandian joined Dimitrov’s team for the ATP 500 in Acapulco and shares coaching duties with Xavier Malisse.