Buse Turns Rio Crowd Against Fonseca
Amid roaring home support and a rain delay, Ignacio Buse outlasted Joao Fonseca in a tense three-setter, exploiting errors to reach his first ATP 500 quarterfinal on the red clay of Rio de Janeiro.
In the sweltering humidity of Rio de Janeiro, where the clay grips every slide and the crowd pulses with expectation, Ignacio Buse upended the local hope Joao Fonseca 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday at the Rio Open presented by Claro. The 21-year-old Peruvian, surging to a career-high No. 91 from No. 230 just a year ago, weathered the first-set loss in their debut ATP Head2Head meeting and capitalized on 43 unforced errors from the Brazilian across two hours and 26 minutes. This breakthrough makes him the first from Peru to crack an ATP 500 quarterfinal since the category launched in 2009, a gritty advance forged in the tournament’s pressure-filled atmosphere.
A one-hour rain delay heightened the tension, but Buse returned with sharpened focus, saving eight of nine break points he faced—including three in the second set’s opening game and three more at 4-3 in the third. His heavy topspin forehands pushed Fonseca deeper, forcing overhit attempts in extended rallies, while crosscourt backhands neutralized the Brazilian’s aggressive inside-in shots. The Peruvian’s eighth ace, fired down the T, sealed the upset and silenced the partisan fans, propelling him toward a career-defining clash.
“Today was a really difficult match,” Buse said. “We all know the potential that Joao has. We are really close friends. So that was also hard today.”
Buse’s poise reflected his rapid ascent, built through challengers and qualifiers where mental resets proved key. He extended rallies on the grippy surface, using underspin slices to disrupt Fonseca‘s rhythm and down-the-line passes to snatch breaks. “I tried to deal with the pressure the best that I can,” he added. “I did it well today. And next time if I do it bad, I will learn and try to do it better.”
Buse faces Berrettini’s clay power
Awaiting the Peruvian in the quarterfinals is Matteo Berrettini, who labored to a 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 win over Dusan Lajovic in two hours and nine minutes. The Italian, blending his thunderous serve with adaptive groundstrokes, marked his first tour-level quarterfinal on clay since the 2024 Kitzbuhel title. After dropping the opener with lapses in his 1–2 pattern, Berrettini dialed in slice backhands to draw Lajovic forward, then unleashed inside-out forehands to convert four of seven break points in the decider.
The crowd’s energy, still echoing from Fonseca’s near-triumph, fueled Berrettini’s comeback as he won 80 percent of first-serve points in the final sets. Lajovic’s steady baseline game faltered against the deeper topspin that pinned him back, highlighting the surface’s demand for patience amid Rio’s relentless bounce. This result signals Berrettini’s knee recovery syncing with clay’s slide, setting up a duel where Buse’s defensive depth could test the Italian’s power margins.
Etcheverry survives rain-soaked tension
Eighth seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry advanced with a 7-6(1), 6-4 victory over qualifier Vilius Gaubas in two hours and seven minutes, navigating late drama that mirrored the tournament’s interruptions. Leading 5-2 in the second set, the Argentine missed a match point on the Lithuanian’s serve, then served for the win only for rain to suspend play. Upon resumption, he dropped serve but broke straight back, his looping crosscourt forehands overwhelming Gaubas’s bid for a first tour-level quarterfinal.
Etcheverry’s resilience lifts him to No. 44 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, reclaiming Top 50 status for the first time since April last year. The delay amplified the psychological strain, yet his deep returns and consistent depth wore down the opponent in prolonged exchanges. Next, he meets lucky loser Jaime Faria, who toppled two-time defending champion Sebastian Baez in the opener before outlasting Damir Dzumhur 7-6(1), 6-4 in two hours and three minutes.
Faria’s surge, marked by bold inside-in forehands and timely net rushes, turned a qualifying loss into his career’s boldest run on this surface. Dzumhur held firm in tiebreaks but couldn’t counter the Portuguese’s variety, including low underspin slices that slowed the tempo. As quarterfinals approach under Rio’s humid glare, Buse’s error-forcing grit and Faria’s opportunistic fire challenge the seeds, promising clashes where adaptability on clay could rewrite rising trajectories.
