TUCUMAN/STARNBERG, June 11, 2026

The AAT Challenger IEB+ Tucuman enjoyed its first full day of uninterrupted play on Wednesday at the Tucuman Lawn Tennis Club, with the round of 16 lineup now complete. Eleven Argentine players remain in contention at the sixth Challenger event of the year in Argentina and the fifth organized by the Argentine Tennis Association (AAT).

Among them is Federico Coria, one of the tournament’s main attractions, who came through a thrilling first-round encounter against fellow Argentine Segundo Goity Zapico. Coria prevailed 7-5, 5-7, 7-6(7) after an exhausting three hours and 31 minutes on Centre Court.

“My goal is to spend hours on court—although maybe not quite this many,” Coria joked afterwards. “I’m exhausted. Hopefully I’ll be ready to compete again tomorrow.”

The former world Top 50 player, currently ranked No. 999 after being sidelined by several injuries this season, is making use of a wild card granted by the AAT as he looks to rebuild his ranking. The victory was only his second win of the year and sets up an all-Argentine clash against second seed Andrea Collarini (No. 288), the defending champion in Tucuman.

Reflecting on his match, Coria praised his 20-year-old opponent, who combines professional tennis with studies at Florida Atlantic University.

“You can clearly see his college tennis background because he never tried to engage in long rallies. His game is very suited to hard courts,” Coria said. “The humid conditions kept the ball low, which suited him. I tried to create pressure situations and force mistakes, but he stayed solid throughout. If he continues playing like this, he has a very bright future.”

Off the court, Coria has also embraced the local culture during his stay in Tucuman.

“I visited the Historic House of Independence, went to San Martín’s stadium and ate plenty of empanadas,” he said. “The only thing missing is a milanesa sandwich—and hopefully less rain so we can play and more people can come watch.”

1⃣1⃣ argentinos están entre los 16 tenistas de segunda ronda del AAT Challenger IEB+ edición Tucumán

Hernán Casanova, Andrea Collarini, Carlos Zárate, Federico Coria, Thiago Cigarran, Lorenzo Rodríguez y Nicolás Kicker se sumaron a los ganadores de ayer: Juan Estevez, Guido… pic.twitter.com/9FeJHW8z5P

— Asociación Argentina de Tenis (@AATenis) June 10, 2026

Two young Argentines also recorded notable victories and strengthened their positions in the race for the Galperin Merit Scholarship. Carlos Zarate (No. 467) and Juan Estevez (No. 385), both born in 2005, entered the week tied at the top of the standings with 37 points each and will add four more points following their wins.

Zarate, from Corrientes, defeated Juan Bautista Torres (No. 282) 6-1, 7-6(3), while Estevez, who hails from 25 de Mayo, had already secured a convincing 6-4, 6-2 victory over Chile’s Matías Soto (No. 316) on Tuesday.

WEDNESDAY RESULTS

Singles – Round of 32

[2] Andrea Collarini (ARG) d [LL] Julian Cundom (ARG) 62 64
Carlos Maria Zarate (ARG) d [3] Juan Bautista Torres (ARG) 61 76(3)
[Q] Johan Alexander Rodriguez (COL) d [4] Juan Manuel La Serna (ARG) 36 60 75
[7] Nicolas Kicker (ARG) d [Q] Tomas Martinez (ARG) 60 64
[WC] Federico Coria (ARG) d [WC] Segundo Goity Zapico (ARG) 75 57 76(7)
[Q] Arklon Huertas Del Pino Cordova (PER) d [WC] Maximo Zeitune (ARG) 67(1) 64 75
Hernan Casanova (ARG) d [Q] Samuel Heredia (COL) 62 63
[Q] Thiago Cigarran (ARG) d [LL] Wilson Leite (BRA) 64 63
Lorenzo Joaquin Rodriguez (ARG) d [Q] Nicolas Villalon (CHI) 62 67(5) 63
Nick Hardt (DOM) d Bruno Fernandez (BRA) 75 62

Doubles – Round of 16

[1] Eduardo Ribeiro (BRA)/Federico Zeballos (BOL) d [Alt] Juan Estevez
(ARG)/Gonzalo Zeitune (ARG) 62 60
Ignacio Monzon (ARG)/Nicolas Villalon (CHI) d [2] Luis Britto (BRA)/Ignacio Carou (URU) 63 67(2) 10-7
[3] Andrea Collarini (ARG)/Nicolas Kicker (ARG) d Valentin Basel (ARG)/Juan Sebastian Gomez (COL) 26 63 10-8
Thiago Cigarran (ARG)/Matheus Pucinelli De Almeida (BRA) d [4] Conner
Huertas del Pino (PER)/Arklon Huertas Del Pino Cordova (PER) 62 64
Joaquin Aguilar Cardozo (URU)/Santiago De La Fuente (ARG) d Tomas
Martinez (ARG)/Ezequiel Monferrer (ARG) 76(3) 63
Hernan Casanova (ARG)/Santiago Rodriguez Taverna (ARG) d [WC] Julian
Cundom (ARG)/Segundo Goity Zapico (ARG) 62 62
Mateo Del Pino (ARG)/Ryan Dickerson (USA) d [WC] Juan Ignacio Gallego
(ARG)/Agustin Libre (ARG) 62 62
Luciano Emanuel Ambrogi (ARG)/Maximo Zeitune (ARG) d Lorenzo Joaquin
Rodriguez (ARG)/Carlos Maria Zarate (ARG) Walkover