Tabilo spoils Fonseca's Buenos Aires return, wins dramatic second-round clash
Alejandro Tabilo claimed a thrilling win at the IEB+ Argentina Open Wednesday, beating the defending champion Joao Fonseca 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 in the second round and extending the Brazilian’s challenging start to the 2026 season.
Despite letting slip a break lead at 3-1 in the third set, Tabilo ultimately capitalised on Fonseca’s 33 unforced errors to seal the victory on his third match point in a two-hour, 24-minute battle.
“I was very connected with the team. They helped me through it all,” Tabilo said. “A lot of nerves at the end, but I feel like we played a very good game, very smart tactics and just outlasted him. I knew he was going to come out swinging and I just had to be very solid.”
Tabilo won 77 per cent (40/52) of his first-serve points and saved 57 per cent (4/7) of the break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats. With the triumph over No. 33 in the PIF ATP Rankings Fonseca, Tabilo earned his first Top-50 win on clay since upsetting No. 5 Novak Djokovic in the second round at the ATP 1000 event Monte-Carlo last April. He will face seventh seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the quarter-finals.
Fonseca, who withdrew from Brisbane and Adelaide due to a lower back injury and lost in the opening round at the Australian Open, was unable to hold out against the Chilean’s ball-striking. He claimed his first tour-level title a year ago in Buenos Aires. The 19-year-old former Next Gen ATP Finals champion will hope to regain form when he competes next week at the ATP 500 in Rio de Janeiro, his hometown.
[ATP APP]Etcheverry booked his quarter-final spot by rallying past fellow Argentine Roman Andres Burruchaga 7-6(5), 6-7(3), 6-4. The Argentine saved a set point in the opening set. With the win, the 26-year-old recorded his 50th tour-level clay-court victory.
In other action, Vit Kopriva halted eighth seed Matteo Berrettini’s run in the second round by defeating the Italian 6-4, 6-3. Berrettini was competing in his first tournament of the season after withdrawing from the Australian Open due to an abdominal injury. By defeating Berrettini, Kopriva became the first Czech quarter-finalist in the tournament’s history and will face top seed Francisco Cerundolo or Hugo Dellien in the last eight.
Mariano Navone defeated Emilio Nava 6-2, 6-1 to book his second-round spot.
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