Hit a wall: Etcheverry couldn't break down Medvedev, out of Halle

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·16 Juni 2026

Hit a wall: Etcheverry couldn't break down Medvedev, out of Halle

The start of the grass-court swing once again proved elusive for Tomás Martín Etcheverry. In what was a highly demanding debut, the player from La Plata (currently No. 30 in the world rankings) was unable to crack the solidity of Russia’s Daniil Medvedev (the 4th seed and world No. 8) and fell 6-3, 6-4 in the first round of the ATP 500 in Halle (Terra Wortmann Open). The match on the German grass was settled in one hour and 31 minutes of play.

For “Tomi,” the clash represented a golden opportunity to turn around a difficult run: he had suffered four losses in his last five appearances and was looking to rediscover the consistency he had lost after his title on the clay of Rio de Janeiro. However, the green surface offers very little room for adaptation, and across the net stood a flat-hitting specialist who came in with momentum after reaching the semifinals in ’s-Hertogenbosch.

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A match uphill from the standpoint of efficiency

First set (6-3): The match seemed ready to smile on the Argentine, who had two break-point chances in the very first game. Medvedev reacted in time to hold serve and, in the following game, punished Etcheverry’s lack of sharpness by breaking his serve. With the lead in his pocket, the Russian pulled the strings from the baseline and sealed the set with another break in the eighth game.
Second set (6-4): Etcheverry tried to stand his ground and patiently extend the rallies in search of cracks in his opponent’s game. Although he managed to level the flow of play and hold his service games more solidly at several stretches, Medvedev never had any real trouble on his own serve. One surgical break was enough for the former world No. 1 to tip the scales definitively in his favor and secure his spot in the round of 16.

With this result, the previously nonexistent head-to-head between the two was opened in the Russian’s favor. Etcheverry will have to turn the page quickly and set his sights on the next objective on the surface, hoping to arrive at Wimbledon’s main draw with better feelings.

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