Santiago Open RD1: Dolz Claims Sole Upset On Opening Day

There was just a single surprise result on the opening day of the Santiago Open in Spain, with World No.271 Pablo Dolz getting the better of the event’s No.6 seed, Marc Lopez, to reach the quarter finals.

The Challenger 5 level event is being run with domestic restrictions, meaning only those currently living in Spain have been permitted to enter, with the entirety of the 16-man draw hailing from the host nation.

20-year-old Dolz, who only made his debut on Tour at the end of 2020, came into the tournament unseeded, and faced off against Lopez, ranked 81 places above him, in the first round.

The youngster lost the first game, but recovered to take control of the contest from then on, winning the next three games quite comfortably to book his place in the second round, where he will face former top 50 man Edmon Lopez.

Elsewhere, No.8 seed Javier Martin had to fight from a game down to win his first round match-up with Alvaro Gaitan in five, while top seed Ivan Perez got the better of Aron Astray in four.

Both the quarter finals and semi-finals take place at Gimnasio Squash Santiago on Wednesday, February 9, with the final to be held on Thursday, February 10.

First Round Results: Santiago Open
[1] Ivan Perez (ESP) bt Aron Astray (ESP) 3-1: 8-11, 11-2, 11-6, 11-4
[5] Augusto Ortigosa (ESP) bt Joel Jaume Izcara (ESP) 3-0: 12-10, 11-6, 11-7
Pablo Dolz (ESP) bt [6] Marc Lopez (ESP) 3-1: 7-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-4
[4] Edmon Lopez (ESP) bt Pablo Quintana Estevez (ESP) 3-0: 11-8, 11-6, 11-1
[3] Sergio Garcia Pollan (ESP) bt Mateo Rodriguez Bello (ESP) 3-0: 11-1, 11-1, 11-1
[8] Javier Martin (ESP) bt Alvaro Gaitan (ESP) 3-2: 14-12, 6-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-5
[7] Nilo Vidal (ESP) bt Alvaro Martin (ESP) 3-0: 11-5, 11-5, 12-10
[2] Hugo Varela (ESP) bt Ernesto Revert Escutia (ESP) 3-0: 11-1, 11-2, 11-1

Quarter Final Draw: To Be Played Wednesday, February 9
[1] Ivan Perez (ESP) v [5] Augusto Ortigosa (ESP)
Pablo Dolz (ESP) [4] Edmon Lopez (ESP)
[3] Sergio Garcia Pollan (ESP) v [8] Javier Martin (ESP)
[7] Nilo Vidal (ESP) v [2] Hugo Varela (ESP)