Mariano Navone leaves his first mark in Tokyo | ATP Tour

Tokio

Navone leaves another mark on hard surfaces in Tokyo

Etcheverry and Tabilo are also competing this week in Japan

September 25, 2024

Mariano Navone appears ready to break more and more limits. The Argentine debuted this Wednesday at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships as a breath of fresh air, defeating Italian Luciano Darderi 6-4, 6-4 in his first participation in the Japanese ATP 500. In one of the most emblematic events of the Asian tour, the South American handled himself with a clear direction: to feel more and more comfortable on the hard surface.

The No. 40 in the PIF ATP Rankings continues to make progress on the main stage of the circuit. Navone achieved the second victory of his career on hard court at tour level in Tokyo, following up on the triumph achieved weeks ago at the US Open.

Navone is looking to close the season with a professional breakthrough. The Argentine has written a 2024 season full of unprecedented milestones, reaching his first two ATP Tour finals (Bucharest, Rio de Janeiro) and climbing to a career-high world No. 29.

If mastery of the hard court is a major challenge for the Argentine, Tokyo offers him a real test next. Navone will contest the second round in Tokyo against Reilly Opelka, one of the most infernal servers on the circuit, or Ben Shelton, eighth seed and reigning champion of the tournament.

Matteo Berrettini beat Dutchman Botic Van de Zandschulp 6-3, 6-4 to begin his participation in the Japanese ATP 500. The Italian, champion on clay in Marrakech, Gstaad and Kitzbühel this year, is looking to recover his best form on hard courts after leaving behind a series of injuries that have kept him out of the elite part of the circuit.

Berrettini, who had fallen as low as No. 154 in February, regained a spot in the ATP Tour’s top 50 in July thanks to a brilliant European clay-court swing. The Roman is now No. 42 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and could climb into the Top 30 with a strong showing in Tokyo. He will face top seed Taylor Fritz or Frenchman Arthur Fils in the second round.

Second seed Hubert Hurkacz started the Asian swing with a massive effort, beating American Marcos Giron 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-4. The Pole, who hit 17 aces On the way to victory, he will face in the second round the British Jack Draper or the Italian Mattia Bellucci, who came from the qualifying phase.

In the closing match of the day in Tokyo, Ugo Humbert beat local star Shintaro Mochizuki 6-1, 6-2 after one hour and 17 minutes of play. The Frenchman will play the winner of the American duel between No. 7 seed Frances Tiafoe and Brandon Nakashima in the second round.

The Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships is one of the most traditional events on the Asian tour. Since its introduction on the ATP Tour calendar in the 1973 season, the Japanese capital has elegantly welcomed great tennis legends to its courts. Among others, the Tokyo honours list includes figures such as Stefan Edberg, John McEnroe, Jim Courier, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

Did you know…?
This week in Tokyo, Mariano Navone is treading into practically uncharted territory for Argentine tennis. In an event that is almost 50 years old, Juan Martín del Potro, finalist in 2008 and champion in 2013, is the only Argentine tennis player who has managed to lift the individual trophy at the Ariake Coliseum. No other compatriot has managed to reach the final of the Japanese tournament.