Comesaña lost Roland Garros thriller: 5 hours, 2 MPs, 1 stuck ball | OneFootball

Francisco Comesaña lost “the match of the day” at Roland Garros at the hands of Matteo Berrettini. One man ahead, then the other. Tennis can be everything beautiful and everything cruel about sports in an instant. Or in five hours and 13 minutes for the final 7-6 (3), 5-7, 6-7 (4), 6-4 and 7-6 (15-13).

The Argentine (No. 102 in the ATP rankings) had two match points and even a ball that he let slide onto his side, caught awkwardly and sent into the stands when he could have closed out the match. The Italian (No. 105) is back in the second week of a Grand Slam for the first time since Wimbledon 2023 (he was a finalist at that tournament in 2021).

So much happened on a Simonne Mathieu court packed with fans that the only thing on the winner’s mind at the end of the match was: “I don’t know. I’m just so happy, tired and so grateful for this incredible team. They are part of my family. My brother over there, we grew up playing tennis together. This incredible crowd that supported me in the heat, under the sun, two sets down. We fought through this match, guys. Thank you very much.”

And after playing the longest match of his professional career (surpassing the 4 hours and 49 minutes of his first-round loss to Andy Murray at the 2023 Australian Open), he added: “There is so much work behind this that my team knows, how hard we worked mentally and physically to come back and enjoy these kinds of events, conditions and matches. That’s what I was telling myself during the match. I was telling myself that I deserve to be here. If I had lost the match, it would have hurt a lot, but it would still have been a great battle. I’m so grateful for that. And I will never thank this guy enough, and my family back home and everyone who works with me.”

Berrettini is the second Italian in the Open Era to reach multiple round-of-16 appearances at all four Grand Slam events, alongside Jannik Sinner, and is one step away from matching his best result in Paris, where he will face the winner of the match between Argentine Juan Manuel Cerúndolo and Spain’s Martín Landaluce.

Meanwhile, the Mar del Plata “Shark” recorded his best showing at the Parisian Major, reaching the third round, which he had also achieved at Wimbledon in 2024 and at the US Open that same year. He will be No. 87 when the rankings are next published, climbing 15 spots.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.