BRASILIA (Reuters) - Two years after winning his first tour-level match in Rio de Janeiro, 18-year-old Carlos Alcaraz of Spain became the youngest to clinch an ATP 500 title at the same event on Sunday when he defeated Diego Schwartzman in the final of the Rio Open.
It was a second tour-level title for Alcaraz after his victory in Umag last year and his 6-4 6-2 victory against 13th-ranked Argentine Schwartzman made him the youngest ATP 500 champion since the category was created in 2009.
Alcaraz, who won the NextGen ATP Finals in 2021, came into Sunday’s final after having to play both his quarter-final and last four matches on Saturday because of a scheduling logjam due to rain earlier in the week.
He defeated top seed and world number six Matteo Berrettini and another Italian Fabio Fognini, a former top 10 player, and climbed to a career-best 20th when the ATP rankings were updated on Monday.