Darderi’s surprise congratulatory message from Alcaraz

@argentinaopentennis

Editor's Note: This story has been translated from ATPTour.com/es.

It’s Sunday, shortly before midnight, and 22-year-old Luciano Darderi just claimed his maiden ATP Tour title at the Cordoba Open as a qualifier. Suddenly, the Argentine-born Italian, No. 76 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings this week, sees two notifications light up his phone.

“On Sunday night I got a notification saying that Carlos Alcaraz had started following me and I had a message from him,” he told ATPTour.com with a smile. The No. 2 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings often played in the same youth tournaments as the Villa Gesell native, but they had never exchanged messages before.

“Although I’ve known him for some time, since I was little, for him to write to me was something I wasn’t expecting, honestly, because he’s such a huge star...”, explained Darderi.

“Phenomenon, congratulations, you’re amazing! Keep it up,” the Spaniard wrote to the Italian via direct messaging on Instagram. As soon as he saw it, Darderi thanked Alcaraz and told him he would see him in Buenos Aires. The Spaniard agreed and concluded the exchange with: “a big hug, enjoy the moment!”

“I still haven’t bumped into him here because we haven’t had the chance, I played when he practised. But I hope to cross paths with him and say hello. His message showed me how humble he is because he didn’t have to send me anything,” he said.

Of all the texts and congratulations he received, Darderi also highlighted an emotional video from David Nalbandian. “He’s another tennis superstar and one of the best in the history of Argentine tennis,” he exclaimed.

A pivotal match in Darderi's title run was his quarter-final victory in which he defeated World No. 26 Sebastian Baez to mark the highest-ranked win of his career.

“That match proved to me how much mental strength I have, believing that I could win it. It was a really tough match but I stayed strong and managed to take it," Darderi said.

Darderi was the first to arrive at the Mario Alberto Kempes on Wednesday, before qualifying, and the last to leave on Sunday, trophy in hand. A couple of days later, the Italian celebrated his 22nd birthday and he is now convinced that he has what it takes to thrive on the ATP Tour.

“I really think now that I belong at this level, because of my game and also my ranking,” he said. “But I still need a lot of tournaments and competition. Now I have to play and work a bit more intensely than before in order to give my all at this level,” he said.

“The week in Cordoba will help me sustain the career I have... in order to try and keep improving, plan my events with more peace of mind, and the results will come,” he concluded.

So Darderi’s future promises plenty of new and exciting chapters in a story of a rise that is showing no signs of slowing down.