BUENOS AIRES/STARNBERG, October 4, 2024

Four Argentines have reached the quarterfinals of the YPF Buenos Aires Challenger being held at the Racket Club this week. Francisco Comesana wrapped up second-round action with a hard-fought win, defeating Kazakhstan’s Dmitry Popko in two tiebreaks. This victory secures his second consecutive quarterfinal appearance at the event.

Calm under pressure @fran_comesana edges past Popko 7-6(4), 7-6(7) to secure his place in the @ChallengerBA quarterfinals#ATPChallenger | @AATenis pic.twitter.com/9Jk6FCzFKD

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) October 3, 2024

“It was a really tough match. I felt like I couldn’t hit the ball as hard as I wanted, but I relied heavily on my team and the crowd. They gave me confidence to fight for every point, and I fought until the end. Now I have to focus on recovery to be ready for Friday. I’ll need to play my game and lean on the support of the crowd, which gave me a great boost today,” said Comesana.

The 23-year-old home favourite, a national sensation after reaching the third round at both Wimbledon and the US Open, dominated in both tiebreaks, winning 7-4 and 9-7 to seal his spot in the quarters. A champion in Oeiras earlier this year, Comesana will be aiming for a win on Friday to move two steps closer to his sixth ATP Challenger career title.

His quarterfinal opponent will be Juan Pablo Varillas, who displayed his best form to defeat No. 6 seed Roman Andres Burruchaga. “I think I stayed solid from start to finish. I played at a high level, which is what I’ve been striving for all year—consistency and maintaining focus throughout the match. Overall, it was an excellent performance,” said the 28-year-old Peruvian, who is looking to climb back up the rankings after reaching No. 60 in June 2023. Varillas is making his first appearance at the Buenos Aires Challenger in three years and will now contest the quarterfinals.

Thursday’s Center Court action kicked off with a victory by third seed Hugo Dellien, who once again defeated Brazilian Felipe Meligeni Alves, making it four wins in as many encounters. Coincidentally, Dellien’s last quarterfinal appearance at the Buenos Aires Challenger in 2021 also came against Meligeni Alves. On Friday, the Bolivian will aim to reach the semifinals for the first time when he faces Dutchman Jesper de Jong, who is enjoying the best season of his career. De Jong made headlines at Roland Garros by qualifying for the main draw, upsetting Britain’s Jack Draper, and taking a set from eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz. The 24-year-old, the first Dutchman to compete in this tournament, defeated Andrea Collarini, the only player to have participated in all nine editions of the event. After the match, de Jong greeted fans who supported him, some of whom wore Ajax jerseys, the football club he supports.

Friday’s action will begin with the only all-Argentine clash: Camilo Ugo Carabelli, runner-up in the 2022 edition, will face Juan Bautista Torres, one of the wild cards into the main draw. Next up will be top seed Federico Coria will take on No. 7 seed Gustavo Heide of Brazil.

THURSDAY RESULTS

Second Round – Singles

2) Francisco Comesana (ARG) def. Dmitry Popko (KAZ) 7-6 (4) 7-6 (7).

3) Hugo Dellien (BOL) def. Felipe Meligeni Alves (BRA) 6-3 6-4.

5) Jesper de Jong (NED) def. Andrea Collarini (ARG) 6-4 6-3.

Juan Pablo Varillas (PER) def. 6) Roman Andres Burruchaga (ARG) 6-1 6-3.

Quaterfinals – Doubles

Genaro Alberto Olivieri (ARG) / Camilo Ugo Carabelli (ARG) def. Scott Duncan (GBR) / Hunter Reese (USA) 5-7, 6-4 10-4.

Hugo Dellien (BOL) / Ignacio Carou (URU) def. 2) Guido Andreozzi (ARG) / Mariano Kestelboim (ARG) 6-3, 2-6 10-7.

Felipe Meligeni Alves (BRA) / Marcelo Zormann (BRA) def. (WC) Leonardo Aboian (ARG) / Valerio Aboian (ARG) 6-4 6-1.