Second Round Of Copa Faulcombridge Valencia Is Set

Copa Faulcombridge ATP Challenger Valencia

VALENCIA/STARNBERG, November 22, 2022

For the penultimate time this year the ATP Challenger Tour has come to Spain for the inaugural Copa Faulcombridge Ciudad de Valencia. The €67,960 clay-court event is being held at the Club de Tenis Valencia this week and four-time ATP Tour singles champion Pablo Andujar serves as the tournament director.

Following the withdrawal of World No. 74 Bernabe Zapata Miralles of Spain due to a right hand injury, his compatriot and World No. 76 Roberto Carballes Baena is the highest-ranked player in the field. The second seed opened his title bid with a 7-5, 6-0 first-round win over Italian Raul Brancaccio on Tuesday. Carballes Baena capitalized on six of his 12 break-point opportunities to advance in one hour and 48 minutes. The Tenerife native will next face French teenager Luca van Assche, who captured the 2021 French Open Boys’ Singles title.

Spanish wild card entries Carlos Lopez Montagud and Nikolas Sanchez Izquierdo also booked their spots in the second round. Lopez Montagud edged past Geoffrey Blancaneaux of France 7-6(4), 6-4 in two hours and 18 minutes. The 22-year-old from Valencia will next play Italian qualifier Gian Marco Moroni.

Sanchez Izquierdo leads the top half of the draw after defeating Italian lucky loser Alessandro Giannessi 6-2, 6-4 in one hour and 31 minutes. Up next for the World No. 263 will be Nikola Milojevic of Serbia.