Italian tennis player Luciano Darderi, seeded second, secured a spot in the quarterfinals of the Argentina Open by defeating Chile’s Tomas Barrios 6-1, 6-3. Darderi, ranked 22nd globally, displayed a strong performance, winning 95 percent of his first service points during the match that lasted an hour and 22 minutes on the clay courts of the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club. Barrios, ranked 114th, struggled with his first serve, managing to win only 47 percent of points and committing 22 unforced errors.
23-year-old Darderi expressed his comfort playing on clay after a five-month hiatus, highlighting his satisfaction with the match outcome. Despite Barrios improving in the second set, Darderi maintained his composure and joy for reaching the quarterfinals once again. Darderi is aiming for his fifth career title and is set to face Pedro Martinez in the upcoming round.
In other round-of-16 matches at the tournament, Argentine player Camilo Ugo Carabelli defeated compatriot Mariano Navone 6-2, 7-5, while Sebastian Baez from Argentina overcame Peru’s Ignacio Buse with a score of 6-4, 6-3. Additionally, former Argentina and Chile manager Jorge Sampaoli was relieved of his duties at Atletico Mineiro due to a poor start in the Brazilian Serie A season. The decision came after Atletico’s 3-3 draw with newly promoted Remo, leaving the team in the 15th position in the standings with two points from three games.
Atletico Mineiro announced the termination of Sampaoli’s coaching tenure following an agreement reached after a meeting on Thursday. Sampaoli, who had a mixed record with the club, will be replaced on an interim basis by assistant manager Lucas Goncalves until a permanent successor is appointed.
