Former Uruguay striker swings and misses as tennis debut ends in defeat
"I enjoyed it quite a lot. I knew that the possibility of it being a difficult game for us was very high. I was happy. It's not easy at all. I played an exhibition in 2017 and 2018 and I didn't have the experience of today."
Former football player and Ballon d'Or winner in 2010, Uruguay's Diego Forlan, makes his debut as a tennis professional at 45 in a doubles match with Federico Coria against Federico Zeballos and Boris Arias on November 13, 2024.
Reuters
Former Uruguay striker Diego Forlan swung and missed on court with Argentina's Federico Cori as his tennis doubles debut ended in defeat, losing 6-1 6-2 to Bolivia's Boris Arias and Federico Zeballos at the Uruguay Open on Wednesday.
The 45-year-old Forlan buckled under the pressure as the duo were outplayed by the dynamic Bolivian pair, managing just 27 points in the 47-minute match.
It was a stark contrast to the roaring applause from the sell-out crowd at the Carrasco Lawn Tennis Centre, who were hoping to see the same magic that Forlan once produced on the court.
"I enjoyed it quite a lot. I knew that the possibility of it being a difficult game for us was very high. I was happy. It's not easy at all. I played an exhibition in 2017 and 2018 and I didn't have the experience of today," an upbeat Forlan told a press conference.
Forlan enjoyed a brilliant career with Uruguay, scoring 36 goals in 112 appearances, including a heroic run to the semi-finals of the 2010 World Cup.
The former Atletico Madrid, Villarreal, Inter Milan and Manchester United player, with whom he won a Premier League title, turned his attention to tennis since hanging up his boots in 2018.
Forlan has competed in more than three +40 tournaments in Montevideo, also standing out in the MT1000 in Lima of the ITF World Tennis Masters Tour, however, his transition from football prodigy to tennis novice will require a few more practice sets.
The Challenger Tour event continues in Montevideo from Nov. 11-17.
Popular
Spotlight
More from Sports
Players on edge after Sinner, Swiatek doping cases
The star duo spent small fortunes on quickly proving how the banned substances had entered their systems but other players, many of whom do not have huge financial resources at their disposal, are understandably jittery.
Comments
See what people are discussing