Diego Schwartzman he couldn’t stretch his good moment in the Rome Masters 1000. After overcoming the classification with two good victories against the Spanish Albert Ramos Viñolas and the Kazakh Mikhail Kukushkinhe Little fell in his debut in the main draw against the Australian Aleksandar Vukic and said goodbye to Foro Itálico for the last time.
The Buenos Aires player, 142nd in the ranking, put up a fight at the start of the match, but after a suspension of almost an hour due to rain, he gave up the first set. And in the second, with a discomfort in his right leg, he could not do much to avoid the defeat by a double 6-2 against the oceanic, 70th in the world.
Schwartzman, who a few days ago announced that he will retire in the Argentina Open 2025thus played his last match in the Roman competition, in which he was a semi-finalist in 2019 and reached the final in 2020, an edition in which he scored that unforgettable victory against Rafael Nadal in quarters and fell before Novak Djokovic in the end.
Because of that beautiful story in the contest, the Little He said goodbye with a smile, beyond defeat. He was dismissed by a chorus of voices chanting his name. He gave his towels to a couple of fans who cheered him on from the stands. And even the canchero, who was preparing the court for the next game, came up to greet him.
“With this happiness Rome ends. I love you!” tanosss!!! Thank you for bringing so many smiles to my face during an emotionally difficult week. See you forever. “Today it was difficult for me to compete physically and emotionally,” he wrote minutes later on his social networks.
With this happiness Rome ends. I love you so much 🍕🍝🇮🇹❤️!!! Thank you for bringing so many smiles to my face during an emotionally difficult week. See you always 🇮🇹❤️. Today it was very difficult to compete physically and emotionally. pic.twitter.com/UDpKHTaXS9
— diego schwartzman (@dieschwartzman) May 8, 2024
Against Vukic, a player who has not yet won any ATP tournament and played in only one final (Atlanta 2023), Schwartzman was 2-3 after giving up serve in the fifth game. He had his chances to recover it in the next one, but the Australian saved three break point chances and stretched the lead to 4-2, when the rain was already falling more intensely. After that game, the action stopped for about an hour.
On the restart, Vukic did not hesitate: he got a new break and then closed the set with his serve. In the second, with the Australian up 2-1 (break included), the Argentine asked the doctor for discomfort in the upper part of his right leg. And although he returned to the court, he could not reverse the score.
The Buenos Aires man, semi-finalist in Roland Garros 2020 and world number eight in that same season, failed to end a long drought without victories in main draws at the ATP level. His last celebration on the most important circuit of men’s tennis was in October of last year, when he beat the debut of Tokio a Francisco Cerúndolo in two sets
In the next round, he was eliminated by Alex De Miñaur. Then he closed 2023 with a fall in the debut in Basel. And in 2024, after being left out of Australia (did not pass qualifying) and missing a Grand Slam for the first time in ten years, lost in the opening round of Córdoba, Buenos Aires, Los Cabos, Acapulco, Miami y Barcelona (in which they did pass the previous phase).
After almost two seasons away from a competitive level and without finding his tennis or enjoying himself on a court, on Monday he announced that the end already had a date. “I want my last tournaments to be my own decision. May 2024 be that way, hopefully having the opportunity to compete in the tournaments that I enjoy the most. And in 2025, in Argentina, to be able to have my final moment, the most beautiful closing that can imagine,” he commented in a message posted on Instagram, in which he recalled the most beautiful moments of his career.
That announcement seemed to take a weight off his shoulders and he managed to play two good games in qualifying in Rome. He was seen smiling and comfortable on the court again, enjoying the affection of the public, who never stopped encouraging him. This Wednesday, he could not add a third victory to advance in the main draw and said goodbye definitively to the Italian tournament. And now he thinks about Roland Garros, where he would also have to play the qualification.
The rain, protagonist
The rain, the main protagonist of the day, prevented all the scheduled matches from being completed. Among those who were suspended – and will be completed this Thursday – were those who played Nadia Podoroska y Lourdes Carléthrough the main frame of the WTA 1000 romano.
The rain forced the Podoroska and Carlé duels, among others, to be postponed. Photo EFE/EPA/FABIO FRUSTACI
The Rosario, 61st, led 3-1 against the Spanish Sarah Smiles, 47th, when the action was stopped due to bad weather. And the one born in Daireaux, 71st, she was 2-2 in the third set against the German Laura Siegemund, 86th, after having won the first 6-2 and lost the second 6-4. Both will resume at 7.
This Thursday will also mark the debut of Rafael Nadal, who is also playing for the last time in a tournament he won ten times. The Mallorcan, currently ranked 305th in the ranking after a couple of seasons complicated by injuries, will face the Belgian from 8 a.m. Zizou Bergs108th and coming from the classification.
On the Argentine side, it will also be presented Pedro Cachin99th, who will face the German around 2:00 p.m. Jan Lennard Struff41°.