Argentinian tennis players Juan Manuel Cerúndolo and Francisco Comesaña have advanced through qualification to the main draw of the Monte-Carlo Masters 1000, the first major clay-court tournament of the season. With their entries, there are now five Argentines in the main draw, alongside Francisco Cerúndolo, Sebastián Báez, and Tomás Etcheverry. Juanma Cerúndolo sealed his spot after defeating the Spaniard Pedro Martínez 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 in a fluctuating match, as reported by the Noticias Argentinas news agency. The 24-year-old from Buenos Aires Province had begun the qualifiers with a victory over Hugo Nys 6-3, 6-3. This will be his first participation in the main draw of the event, and he is going through the best moment of his career, ranked 69th in the ATP standings with a record of 5 wins and 5 losses in Masters 1000 tournaments. Comesaña put in a solid performance as he started by defeating the Monegasque Romain Arneodo 6-1, 6-1 and then eliminated American Ethan Quinn (56th), the top favorite in the qualifiers, 7-5, 6-2. In that match, he rallied from a 2-5 deficit in the first set, saved two set points, and dominated in the second set with his serve, achieving an 81% first-serve effectiveness and making crucial breaks. The Mar del Plata native, who now ranks 99th in the rankings as of this Monday, reached the main draw for the first time in his second attempt in the qualifiers. With this victory, he has added 30 points, which improves his position in the race to directly qualify for the Roland Garros tournament, whose entry list will be determined by the ranking of April 13.
