He started the year on the right foot. Or, rather, the Australian Open 2024; because the truth is that the Argentine tennis player Tomás Martín Etcheverry (32nd) lost his first two challenges in January, at the ATP in Brisbane and Adelaide. However, his victory in the first Grand Slam of the year, against none other than a former number 1 like Andy Murray (44th), overshadowed these setbacks. He was a forceful 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 with flashes of infallibility.
For now, in the second round an always difficult opponent awaits him, despite his 37 years and a not very fearsome ranking (76th): the Frenchman Gael Monfils. And if another type of motivation were needed, whoever triumphs in this morning’s match will meet the winner of the match between Novak Djokovic (1st) and the local Alexei Popyrin (43rd). No small fact: the Serbian has not lost at Melbourne Park since 2018, against Hyeon Chung.
Tomás Etcheverry swept Andy Murray in straight sets. (Photo: Argentine News)
Keys to a necessary victory
Etcheverry He needs to regain the confidence and tennis he enjoyed for much of 2023; precisely, in the last Roland Garros and the months surrounding that French Open. The victory against Murray was an expression that, if he hasn’t already done so, he is close to achieving them. But the player born in La Plata can find in Gael Monfils a kind of mental destabilizer, not at all easy to overcome. Mainly for two reasons: first, because the temptation to think about Novak Djokovic can distract you from the real challenge of him; and then, because the style of play of My son He always exposes his opponent to an emotional roller coaster.
Elastic and unpredictable, Gael Monfils is always a difficult nut to crack (Photo: @iamgaelmonfils).
The Gaul is characterized, in addition to his acrobatics and elasticity, by an inconsistent head; for starring in stretches of little attention, of indifference. And not infrequently that ends up affecting his rival as well. Etcheverry He declared after beating Murray: “I just tried to play my game and focus on my points.” Precisely that must be replicated in front of a My son that, although he is going through the twilight of his career like the British, on the court he runs like the teenager who was once number 1 in Juniors and won 3 Grand Slams. Full concentration and abstraction from the surroundings he will need Etcheverry to beat him.
Regarding the game, the Argentine must also be strategic in his decisions. This implies the search for short points: his 196 centimeters do not make him particularly adept at exhausting rallies, something with which My son yes he licks his lips. To do this, he will have to maintain, if not elevate, the 71% of first serves he hit against Murray. Before the Scotsman, Etcheverry He won 51 of the 82 points with four strokes or less, a statistic that reflects how comfortable he feels with short points and that he will try to repeat against someone who was number 6 in the world in 2016.
Your great 2023, a two-sided coin
Last year was undoubtedly the moment of explosion of Tomas Etcheverry: The 24-year-old player reached his only two finals so far, in Santiago de Chile and Houston, and the remembered Roland Garros quarterfinals, in which he lost to Alexander Zverev. His level allowed him to enter the top 30 in the ranking for the first time and he currently occupies 32nd place, a “privileged” place that many long for, because it ensures qualification for large tournaments.
But, as happens in tennis, a good year only makes the next difficult. In the first 5 months of this season, the player from La Plata will defend more than half of his 1,375 points, and his performance in the Grand Slams will be vital to take care of his position. In the last Australian Open, Etcheverry reached the second round, an instance that is disputed today. A win tonight would mean 45 valuable points; which could be more… if he is willing to overthrow the 10-time champion on the oceanic continent, Novak Djokovic. But, first, first things.
2024-01-16 18:31:21
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