Thiago Seyboth Wild announced himself to the tennis world on Sunday after he won his first ATP title. The 19-year-old became the youngest Brazilian player to win a title on tour after he defeated Casper Ruud in the Chile Open final on Sunday.
Thiago is the first Next Gen player to win a title this season
Thiago had entered the tournament as a wild card, but he overcame his more experienced opponents to become the first Next Gen player to lift a title this season. The Brazilian showed fight and determination in the final, defeating Ruud 7-5 4-6 6-3 to deny the Norwegian player his second title of the season. Ruud had won the Argentina Open last month. In an interview after the match, Thiago said that winning the title was a dream come true. “It’s an incredible achievement. It’s something I’ve always dreamed about. I need to just take the best from the week and keep ongoing for the rest of the season.”
Nadal’s accomplishments made me dream
The Brazilian success mimicked one of his idols, Rafael Nadal, who won his first ATP title when he was 18 years old. Thiago revealed that he has always admired the Spaniard’s game. The teenager said that is inspired by how Nadal has fought through adversity in his career. “The way he plays keeps himself on the court, and fights for everything is just amazing. It made me dream about everything he’s done, and if I could accomplish 20 percent of what he’s done in his career, that would be great.” Currently ranked 113th, Thiago could break into the top 100 after earing 250 ranking points. The teenager also took home $101, 258 dollars in prize money. He will be a strong candidate to qualify for the Next Gen Finals later this year.
His role model was also victorious over the weekend. Nadal won his first title of the season at the Mexico Open. The Spaniard defeated Taylor Fritz in straight sets to win his third title in Acapulco. Nadal was in fine form and did not drop a set during the tournament. He would have regained the number one ranking after victory in Mexico, but Novak Djokovic won at the Dubai Tennis Championships to maintain his position at the top. The Serbian defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas to continue his fantastic run of form. Djokovic is 18-0 for the season and has been successful in every tournament he has played in. He led Serbia to the inaugural ATP Cup in January, before winning his eighth title at the Australian Open early last month.
Rafael Nadal’s ranking and performance in 2020
At the moment ranked no.2, the Spaniard played his last match on the 29th of February when he beat Taylor Fritz 6-3 6-2 in the final in Acapulco to win his 84th career title.
This season Rafael has a 13-3 win-loss record. The Spaniard conquered 1 title in Acapulco. The Spaniard was the finalist in ATP Cup.
Thiago Seyboth Wild’s ranking and performance in 2020
Now ranked no.113 (career-high), Seyboth Wild played his last match on the 1st of March when he overcame Casper Ruud 7-5 4-6 6-3 in the final in Santiago to win his 0th challenger.
This year the Brazilian has a 6-4 win-loss record. Thiago won his maiden career title in Santiago.
Rafael Nadal and Thiago Seyboth Wild have never played each other.
Rafael Nadal and Thiago Seyboth Wild |
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