Camilo Ugo Carabelli: The Pirate Looking To Plunder In Paris

CórdobaOpen

Every week, at every tournament, the Tour provides a few players with the opportunity to introduce themselves to the world and tell their little – or not so little – back story. Nowhere is this truer than at the Grand Slams, whose immensity and complexity feed the chances of relative unknowns getting to learn a thing or two from the best in the world, as well as giving them a taste of what it feels like to be among the elite of world tennis.

This has very much been the case in recent days for Camilo Ugo Carabelli, one of the surprise packages at Roland Garros. Having come through qualifying in Paris, he is now playing in his first Grand Slam tournament there. No. 154 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Carabelli’s major debut saw him defeat Aslan Karatsev 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(10-5). The 22-year-old Argentine fought back from 2-5 down in the fifth set and claimed the first ever 10-point tie-break in the event's history.

It was Ugo Carabelli's first five-set match, and it came in his first clash against a Top-40 player. He will now be facing a member of the Top 10 in Felix Auger-Aliassime. After the match, the Argentine explained that, throughout the week, on more than one occasion he was so nervous that he was unable to eat. "I couldn't even get an orange juice down me," he said, cracking a laugh.

However, being the centre of attention and seizing the moment comes naturally to him. His grandfather is the owner of a boat that takes tourists to the Brazilian island of Florianopolis, birthplace of former World No. 1 Gustavo Kuerten. It is a pirate ship upon which his mother, María Marta, works alongside his brother, Jeremías, who introduced Camilo to tennis.

As a small boy, Ugo Carabelli would spend the three months of the South American summer there, usually dressed as a pirate and entertaining the tourists. Later, in the afternoon, he would grab his racquets and practise, because tennis and sport were his passions, as well as a source of fun.

"It's my family's company, they do boat trips, and when I was little I used to like dressing up and entertaining people... Now I look at photos of that and I can't believe it, it was crazy," he remembered. "We had a great time. We would go there for three months for many years from January to March. I was on the boat in the morning and then I'd go and play tennis in the afternoon," he explained.

However, until he was 12, Ugo Carabelli mainly played football and tennis was his second sport, until he realised that he was significantly better with a racquet in hand than a ball at his feet. "I was a bit rubbish at football, that's why I chose to play tennis, which I was much better at," he joked.

It turned out that Ugo Carabelli was not destined to be a pirate or a footballer, but a tennis player; and now one who has enjoyed a taste of Roland Garros success. In fact, he became the youngest Argentine to win a match in Paris since Diego Schwartzman (22 years and 9 months) in 2015.

"I know my tennis is good enough and I feel at home. I'm sure this tournament will change me, in terms of confidence, but now I'm much more focussed. I don't want to visualise the future too much so that I can continue to live in the present," he explained, his experience in Bois de Boulogne still yet to sink in. He has won four matches and is enjoying "the happiest days" of his life.

"It's crazy for me... people ask for photos with me and I can't even smile because I'm so excited. I say to myself, 'They're asking for photos of me'... I don't know what happened, I'm winning, it's amazing," he said.

And the dream is still alive, at least for a couple more days.

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