By Alberto Amalfi | Sunday, March 7, 2021
Diego Schwartzman topped qualifier Francisco Cerundolo 6-1, 6-2 capturing his hometown crown in Buenos Aires in the third all-Argentine final in tournament history.
Photo credit: @ArgentinaOpen
Family, friends and fans chanted "Diego! Diego!" as Diego Schwartzman turned Court Guillermo Vilas into a festive house party.
In the third all-Argentinean final in tournament history, Schwartzman swept qualifier Francisco Cerundolo 6-1, 6-2 capturing his hometown crown on the red clay of Buenos Aires.
Watch: Federer Hopes He Can Surprise Himself in Comeback
Schwartzman is the first Argentinean to rule Buenos Aires since David Nalbandian in 2008 and joins Guillermo Coria (2004), Gaston Gaudio (2005) and Juan Monaco (2007) as the fifth homegrown champion in tournament history.
It is Schwartzman's first career title on home soil and much of his family, who have been his strong supporters throughout his career, serenaded the top seed in celebration. Schwartzman claimed his fourth career championship and first since the 2019 Los Cabos.
The world No. 9, who shocked king of clay Rafael Nadal en route to the Rome final last September, snapped a four-match losing streak in ATP finals in improving his career finals record to 4-7.
The 137th-ranked Francisco Cerundolo scored his seventh win of the week—including three qualifying victories—charging into the final a week after his younger brother, Juan Manuel Cerundolo, made an inspired run to his maiden ATP title winning the Cordoba Open.
The Cerundolo brothers, whose father Alejandro represented Argentina on the pro tour back in the 1980s, are the first set of brothers to reach ATP Tour finals in back-to-back weeks since Mischa Zverev was the 2017 Geneva runner-up one week after younger brother Alexander Zverev won the 2017 Rome title.
Francisco Cerundolo took the court aiming to make ATP history: if he prevailed, the Cerundolo's would have been the first brothers to win ATP championships in back-to-back weeks and the seventh set of brothers to win singles titles in the Open Era.
Schwartzman stopped the Cerundolo Cinderella story with buzz-kill precision.
The Roland Garros semifinalist broke twice in succession to open racing out to a 4-0 lead. Weary from all his baseline battles to reach the final, Francisco Cerundolo sometimes bailed out of rallies with drop shot attempts.
Schwartzman broke in four of Francisco Cerundolo's first five service games breaking to snatch the opening set and breaking again to go up 2-0 in the second.
The shortest man in the ATP Top 10 denied three of four break points inciting hometown revelry by raising the title after 80 minutes.