Diego Forlán, a 45-year-old former Uruguayan footballer, made his professional tennis debut in the first round of the doubles tournament at the Challenger in Montevideo. Forlán teamed up with Argentine player Federico Coria (ranked 413th in doubles) and they faced the Bolivian duo of Boris Arias and Federico Zeballos. The match ended in a defeat for Forlán and Coria by 6-1 and 6-2.
The match took place on the main court of the Uruguay Open, with an audience full of spectators watching closely. Despite winning the first game, the Río de la Plata duo suffered a break in the second game while serving. Forlán appeared imprecise with his shots, while Coria, not being familiar with doubles, also did not feel comfortable on the court.
After a promising start, Forlán and Coria failed to maintain their performance and lost Coria's service game a couple of times. Despite their efforts, they could not keep their Bolivian rivals at bay, who prevailed with a final score of 6-1 and 6-2.
With this experience in professional tennis, Forlán plans to return to his career as an amateur tennis player in senior tournaments organized by the ITF. Meanwhile, the Bolivian duo of Arias and Zeballos advanced to the quarterfinals of the Uruguay Open, where they will face another Río de la Plata pair, Mariano Kestelboim from Argentina and Franco Roncadelli from Uruguay.
In the match, the Bolivians demonstrated their strength as the fourth seeds, achieving two breaks in consecutive games to take the first set 6-1 in just 20 minutes. The second set continued with the same dynamic, with Arias and Zeballos dominating the match from the start and securing their advancement in the tournament.
Despite the defeat, Forlán showed flashes of his skill on the court, with volleys and a smash that captivated the attending audience. However, from the third game on, the superiority of the Bolivian pair became evident, culminating in their victory and qualification for the next round in the Uruguay Open.
