Tennis tournament issues statement as star fires bitter accusation at bosses | Tennis | Sport
Organisers of the Rio Open have responded after their No. 1 seed, Francisco Cerundolo, accused them of prioritising other players with scheduling. Cerundolo lifted the trophy at his home tournament, the Argentina Open, on Sunday and then played his opening match in Rio on Tuesday.
The world No. 19 then played his second round match on Wednesday and retired while trailing countryman Thiago Agustin Tirante 6-2 3-1. Afterwards, Cerundolo claimed that he asked organisers for an extra day off before his second-round match, given how much tennis he’d played recently.
“I didn’t expect to have to play two matches back-to-back between yesterday and today,” Cerundolo told reporters in Rio. “I made the request so they wouldn’t schedule me like this, but they didn’t give me even a single chance. I can already imagine who they prioritise.”
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The tournament has now issued a statement, refuting Cerundolo’s claims and stating that he never asked to play on Thursday. “The Rio Open clarifies that there was no request from the mentioned athlete to the organisation of the tournament,” it read.
“We emphasise that all decisions are made in accordance with ATP protocols and guidelines, with total transparency. Our commitment is always to balance the needs of athletes, the public and national and international TV broadcasting, ensuring that all procedures follow clear and unbiased rules.”
Cerundolo officially retired, citing a back injury. He called the physio early in the second set and played on, but soon called it quits. After reaching the quarter-finals, Tirante said: “It’s not good to win like this, especially with Fran, one of my friends.
“Any moment, I didn’t see anything. I knew that he was very tired from last week, so I had to improve myself on the court and focus on me.”
The world No. 19 is due to compete in next week’s ATP 250 event in Santiago. Meanwhile, Tirante will make just his second tour-level quarter-final appearance against Chilean star Alejandro Tabilo. In his only prior quarter-final, Tirante beat Roberto Carballes Baena at the 2024 Bastad Open, but lost to eventual champion Nuno Borges in the semis.
