Francisco Comesaña: from the streets of Argentina to surprising Rublev at Wimbledon | ATP Tour

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Francisco Comesaña: from the streets of Argentina to surprising Rublev at Wimbledon

The Argentine defeated the world No. 6 to achieve his first victory

July 03, 2024

Wimbledon’s Court No. 2 was the scene of the first upset in the men’s draw on Tuesday afternoon. Making his Grand Slam debut, Argentina’s Francisco Comesaña stunned No. 6 Andrey Rublev in four sets for his first tour-level win.

Immediately after his victory, the 23-year-old Argentine raised his arms and had a huge smile on his face. A few hours later, Comesaña appeared in a small room in the Wimbledon press centre, overlooking the club and the London skyline.

Smiling, sitting in his chair, Comesaña put his phone on silent. Then he put it on the table in front of him, with the screen facing down, to give himself a break from the continuous congratulatory messages he was receiving.

“I have received many, many messages. My family is in Argentina now and I have spoken to them, to my girlfriend, who are very excited,” Comesaña told ATPTour.com. “My phone is going to break with all the messages I am receiving! My friends keep writing to me as well.”

“It’s amazing. I just enjoyed every moment of the match. I tried to enjoy the occasion, the crowd. It was my first time playing on such a big court. I’m enjoying this moment and playing on grass. I’m very happy.”

Comesaña’s journey to this point began 16 years ago in the Argentine coastal city of Mar del Plata, located 400 km from Buenos Aires. It is true that his first love was football, a sport he used to play almost every afternoon.

However, one afternoon this changed. Comesaña was going to play football on a concrete pitch near his house, when a friend approached him with a racket. Unconvinced, at the age of seven he agreed to try tennis and, from then on, there was no turning back.

“I used to play football when I was little. I played with friends, but one day one of them asked me if I wanted to try tennis, so I started playing tennis,” said Comesaña. “I played and I thought I was pretty good and I enjoyed it. My friends stopped playing, but I loved it. I started training more and more, but I didn’t have any friends to play with, so I started playing against the wall. I would hit a wall for four or five hours a day. So when my friends wanted to come back, it was already impossible for them, because I had already improved,” he said about his beginnings in this sport.

Comesaña began to live and breathe tennis, and the sport became his main passion. The Argentine trained at the Edison Lawn Tennis Club in his hometown and remembers watching his compatriots Juan Martín del Potro and David Nalbandian on television.

“I remember watching a lot of Del Potro and Nalbandian matches. They were incredible players. They achieved a lot,” said Comesaña. “I have never spoken to them, but maybe after this victory I will!”

Comesaña first competed in ITF Futures tournaments in 2017, playing solely on clay until 2020, when he claimed his first hard-court win at this level. In 2021 he moved to Córdoba and in 2022 he won his first ATP Challenger Tour title. Four more trophies followed in this category (all on clay), reaching his highest position in the PIF ATP Rankings of World No. 87 last May.

The Argentine lost in the qualifiers for the 2022 and 2023 US Open, as well as the Australian Open this year. And his first opportunity to play in the main draw of a Grand Slam came at Wimbledon, where the 23-year-old Argentine is rubbing shoulders with the biggest stars of this sport.

“When I’m not playing tennis, I’m watching matches,” Comesaña said. “This Sunday, if there’s an ATP final somewhere, I’ll get up and watch it. Tennis is my life, so it’s great to be here.”

“I love watching Sinner and Alcaraz play, they are amazing players. I have seen them here at Wimbledon and it is great. I have seen them on the training courts and it is great.”

This Tuesday against Rublev, the Argentine faced his fourth match on the circuit and his first on grass. The world No. 122 will try to continue advancing in London against Adam Walton on Thursday in the second round.

Having arrived in the English capital with no experience on the surface, he seems to be starting to get the hang of it. “I’ve only played two matches on grass, but maybe I’m a grass player, as I have a 100% record at Wimbledon,” Comesaña joked. “I’ve played most of my matches on clay and I would say I’m a clay player, but it’s incredible to be here at Wimbledon. Now we’ll see what happens.”