Norrie advances to Argentina Open final

BUENOS AIRES (AP) — Second-seeded Cameron Norrie became the first British tennis player to reach the final of the Argentine Open (ATP 250) by defeating Peruvian qualifier Juan Pablo in the clay-court tournament on Saturday. of Buenos Aires Rods by 7-6 (5) and 6-4.

The world number 12 will settle the title on Sunday against the winner of the semi-final which will be disputed by two Spaniards: the first seed Carlos Alcaraz and Bernabé Zapata Miralles, one of the surprises of the week at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club.

“My game is gaining consistency. The final is going to be a great match”, predicted Norrie, born in Johannesburg and the son of a Scottish father and a Welsh mother, who will go in search of his fifth ATP trophy. That year he was a finalist in Auckland.

In the first set, the difference in ranking and experience between the contenders was not noticeable (Varillas is ranked 101st and was playing the first semi-final of his career).

After trading breaks mid-set, Norrie’s game grew. But Varilla raised three set points and stretched the definition until the tie-break. Then, the Briton imposed his plateau and took advantage of his fifth set point from a wide drive from his rival.

Peruvian tennis has never been the same again. In the second set, Norrie broke in the first game, nearly broke in the third, then nailed her serve to end the contest in 1:53.

The Briton’s victory prevented a Peruvian from returning to a circuit final as Luis Horna last did so in 2007 (ATP champion in Santiago).

Either way, Varillas capped off a great week coming back from qualifying and will move up to 81st in the ATP on Monday (he will be the fifth tennis player from his country to break into the top 100 in the open era) .

En route to the semi-final, Varillas, 27, who has lived in Argentina for six years, eliminated Portugal’s Joao Souza, Austria’s Dominic Thiem – two-time champion in Buenos Aires – and Italy’s third seed Lorenzo Musetti.