Pezzota Powers Through to Tortugas Open Main Draw

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Number two qualifying seed Rodrigo Pezzota sealed his place in the main draw of the Tour de las Americas – Buenos Aires Tortugas Open, PSA M5 tournament after downing fellow Argentine Matias Valenzuela in the final round of qualifying.

The 31-year-old, who won a bronze medal during the 2015 Pan American Games, eased to a two-game lead, before conceding the third after a resurgent Valenzuela battled to supremacy. His victory was short-lived though as Pezzota soon found himself back on top, and he triumphed in the fourth and final game to wrap up an 11-6, 11-2, 3-11, 11-7 victory.

Pezzota, the World No.428, will go up against Brazil’s Diego Gobbi in the opening round of the main draw, with Gobbi looking to end recent back-to-back first round defeats.

Peru’s Alonso Escudero, the only player not from Argentina to advance through qualifying, swept past Miguel Pujol in straight games, and his reward is a main draw battle with Ireland’s Stuart Hadden, who will look to reach the quarter-final of a PSA World Tour event for the first time in his career.

Local player Ignacio Gutierrez Keen, meanwhile, came through a nail-biting five-game match with number three qualifying seed Juan Pablo Roude to seal his place in the main draw. The lead changed hands multiple times in a high-octane affair, with Gutierrez eventually prevailing to set up a fixture with Paraguay’s Francesco Marcantonio.

Rodrigo Obregon, fresh off the back of dispatching top qualifying seed Daniel Alejandro Lomaglio in the previous round, is the other player to progress after his win against Nahuel Hernan Ramos, and he will go head-to-head with number eight seed Santiago Orozco Parra for a place in the last eight.

Results – Final Qualifying Round: Tour de las Americas – Buenos Aires Tortugas Open 2016
[L] Rodrigo Obregon (ARG) bt [L] Nahuel Hernan Ramos (ARG) 3-0: 12-10, 11-7, 11-5 (40m)
[4] Alonso Escudero (PER) bt [L] Miguel Pujol (ARG) 3-0: 11-8, 11-4, 11-4 (30m)
[L] Ignacio Gutierrez Keen (ARG) bt [3] Juan Pablo Roude (ARG) 3-1: 11-6, 8-11, 11-8, 8-11, 11-6 (58m)
[2] Rodrigo Pezzota (ARG) bt [L] Matias Valenzuela (ARG) 3-1: 11-6, 11-2, 3-11, 11-7 (53m)

Main Draw – First Round
[1] Leandro Romiglio (ARG) v Nicolas Caballero (PAR)
Federico Cioffi (ARG) v [5] Lewis Doughty (ENG)
[6] Francesco Marcantonio (PAR) v [Q] Ignacio Gutierrez Keen (ARG)
[Q] Rodrigo Pezzota (ARG) v [3] Diego Gobbi (BRA)
[4] Stuart Hadden (IRL) v [Q] Alonso Escudero (PER)
[WC] Robertino Pezzota (ARG) v [7] Le Roy Leong (MAS)
[8] Santiago Orozco Parra (COL) v [Q] Rodrigo Obregon (ARG)
Gonzalo Miranda (ARG) v [2] Andres Herrera (COL)