SAO PAULO/STARNBERG, August 28, 2023
After a four-year hiatus, the Clube Paineiras do Morumby hosted a stop on the ITF World Tennis Tour again. And it was Brazilian Eduardo Ribeiro who delighted the São Paulo audience on Sunday, lifting his fourth trophy of his professional career at the II Brasil Tennis Cup, which offered a total prize money of $15,000.
Currently ranked 332nd in the world, Ribeiro entered São Paulo as the top favorite at Paineiras. Throughout the week, however, he had to showcase his best performance on the court. And that’s exactly what he did. He secured five wins in five matches without dropping a set. The highlight came on Sunday.
In his best performance of the week, Ribeiro defeated Chilean Daniel Antonio Nuñez, ranked 997th, and a big surprise in São Paulo. After two hours and 22 minutes, the 25-year-old Brazilian won 6-4, 7-6(6) to lift his first trophy of the season. His last title had been achieved in November 2022, at the ITF World Tennis Tour M25 event in Lajeado.
“I’m very happy for the week here in São Paulo. Very happy to win a title again. The life of a tennis player is like this, if you don’t win, you lose confidence. And in the past few weeks, I was close but falling short, losing matches I knew I had the possibility to win. So, when people ask me why I played an ITF M15 tournament, the feeling of winning a title is crucial. It gives you confidence and that’s exactly what I needed, because only my family, my coach, and my team know the day-to-day life of a high-performance athlete,” explained the Florianópolis-based player.
Ribeiro competed the first eight months of 2023 in bigger tournaments, mixing ATP Challengers, ATP 250s, and the Rio Open, an ATP 500. In the first semester, he reached the semi-finals of two $80,000 ATP Challenger events in Florianópolis and Medellín.
With the title, Ribeiro gains 15 ATP Ranking points, which will be added right after the conclusion of the US Open. In doubles, the Brazilian also clinched the title alongside his partner João Victor Loureiro.
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After winning the Brasil Tennis Cup 2023 title, Ribeiro will return to Florianópolis for two weeks of training with coach Marlon Oliveira. He will make his return to ATP Challenger Tour tournaments in Santa Cruz de La Sierra, Bolivia, starting in September.
Following that, there will be almost two months of tournaments in South America, including the ATP Challengers in Campinas and Curitiba, both organized by the Instituto Sports, in October.
