Tomás Etcheverry left the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis court in tears on Friday night, after being forced to withdraw from his
Argentina Open
quarterfinal match
against Chilean
Nicolás Jarry
before the start of the first set (4-6 and 7-5) due to discomfort in the right leg.
And the studies from the exams he took this Saturday confirmed that he had reasons to feel despondent.
The player from La Plata
suffered a tear in the semimembranosus muscle and would be away from the courts for at least five weeks.
“Unfortunately, yesterday I had to withdraw due to an injury.
Today, studies confirm that it will take me several weeks to recover.
“I am focused on recovery and returning to the courts soon,”
Tommy
wrote on his Instagram account.
“I want to thank you for the incredible support I received this week.
Nothing more beautiful than playing at home.”
At the close of the quarterfinals, on a very windy Friday night, Etcheverry had started very solid against Jarry.
After taking the first set against a very tough opponent, who had just defeated the Swiss
Stan Wawrinka
, winner of three Grand Slams, in the previous round, with the entire stadium against him (except for a handful of his compatriots), the player from La Plata broke ahead in the second.
Jarry, who seemed not to mind the "Davis Cup atmosphere" of the stadium, tied the score.
See this post on Instagram
A post shared by Tomás Etcheverry (@tomasetcheverry123)
And in that second game, Etcheverry felt discomfort in the back of his right leg.
At halftime, he went to the locker room to receive medical attention and, although he returned, he no longer seemed completely comfortable physically.
He held on as best he could.
Although there were balls that he chose not to run and avoided making great efforts, encouraged by the people, who did not let him give up, he continued fighting.
However, he could not "save" that second set.
And after Jarry's 7-5, while the Chilean was in the locker room cooling off for the final chapter, Tommy chatted with his team and told the umpire that he was not going to continue.
Jarry returned to the court and consoled an Argentine, who could not contain his tears and said goodbye amidst an ovation, accompanied by his winner.
Retirement was a hard blow for him.
Because after a couple of complicated weeks, especially mentally (with a loss in the Davis Cup series against Kazakhstan and elimination in the quarterfinals of Córdoba), he had once again felt good on the court and showed great tennis.
What it's all about ❤️
Nicolas Jarry comforts Tomas Etcheverry as the Argentine is forced to retire with injury in their @ArgentinaOpen quarter-final.
pic.twitter.com/WsGhdyZ5GH
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) February 17, 2024
Shortly after, Etcheverry's entourage explained that he had felt a puncture and that he had to wait for the results of the studies to know the severity of the injury.
And this Saturday, while the BALTC was preparing to enjoy the Buenos Aires ATP semis, the tear was confirmed.
The player from La Plata would need to stop for at least five weeks, which means that he will miss the rest of the South American tournaments on slow courts - the
ATP 250 in Santiago
(he made the final last year) and
500 in Rio de Janeiro
- and the first two Masters 1000 of the year,
Indian Wells
and
Miami
(where they had to defend just a few points, 35 between the two).
If these recovery deadlines are met, he would return for the start of the clay tour that culminates in
Roland Garros
, in which he would have to defend in his first commitment, the first week of April, the final in
Houston
.