RIO DE JANEIRO — Fernando Verdasco of Spain beat Serbian Dusan Lajovic 7-6 (4), 6-3 to advance to the round of 16 of the Rio Open clay court tournament. It was the 38-year-old’s first win in an ATP 500 competition since 2019.
Verdasco, formerly a top-10 player, is now ranked 172nd after a series of injuries. He will face Argentinian Federico Coria for a place in the quarterfinals.
Coria eliminated the 5th-seeded player, Christian Garin of Chile, 6-2, 6-0.
Also on Tuesday, 8th-seeded Albert Ramos Vinolas beat Argentinian Juan Londero 6-3, 6-4. The Spaniard will face his countryman Pablo Andujar in the next round.