ATP Tour

Ugo Carabelli goes from 'too hot' to a QF spot in Umag!

Camilo Ugo Carabelli fought off fatigue in sweltering Umag heat on Tuesday to engineer a remarkable opening win at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag.

The third-seeded Argentine, who was competing just three days after his semi-final defeat in Bastad, indicated to his team that he had nothing left to give after he dropped the opening set against Francesco Passaro in Umag. Yet Ugo Carabelli stuck to his task and, as the sun set on the Croatian Adriatic coast, he was rewarded with a 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-3 victory.

“I felt so tired. I played in Saturday on Bastad, so maybe I was tired to play today and it was too hot here, but now I won and I am so happy for that,” said Ugo Carabelli in his on-court interview. “I have a free day tomorrow, so I will take a rest. It is so beautiful here, so I will try to enjoy this beautiful city.”

Ugo Carabelli converted five of 12 break points he earned against Passaro, according to Infosys ATP Stats, to book his quarter-final berth in Umag. The 26-year-old rose two spots to No. 49 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings as a result of his triumph, putting him in a good position to become a Top 50 player for the first time next Monday.

Now 15-15 for the year, Ugo Carabelli will next meet qualifier Pablo Llamas Ruiz, a 6-3, 6-3 winner against Terence Atmane, as he bids to reach his fourth tour-level semi-final of 2025.

In first-round action, Jesper de Jong continued his run of good form by backing up his Bastad final run by downing Croatian wild card Mili Pljicak 6-3, 6-3. The Dutchman will face fifth seed Mariano Navone next.

#NextGenATP star Dino Prizmic soon had the home fans cheering in Umag, however. The 19-year-old home favourite, currently fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, overcame Elmer Moller 6-4, 6-2 for his first ATP Tour win of the season, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index.

Prizmic, who pushed Novak Djokovic to four sets at the 2024 Australian Open, will face Nikoloz Basilashvili in the second round at his home ATP 250.