Fans at the 2025 Mexican Open in Acapulco witnessed a bizarre evening of tennis as almost all seeded players lost or withdrew due to food poisoning.
All of the seeded players made it through the first round in Acapulco, a promising start for both them and tournament organizers, as having top players in the second round means more attractive matches.
However, Wednesday’s second-round action proved to be a disaster. Third-seeded Tommy Paul withdrew from his match against Marcos Giron, citing stomach issues.
He wasn’t alone; Holger Rune, who had a strong opening in Acapulco, faced Brandon Nakashima in the second round but quickly fell behind. Rune retired after just three games, also citing stomach issues.
“Furious and so sad at the same time. Had food poisoning and was unable to play today. One of my favorite places is Mexico and I love this tournament. Absolutely not the way I wanted it to end.”
Following Rune’s retirement, Casper Ruud also withdrew from his match against home wild card Rodrigo Pacheco Mendez, citing a “stomach illness.”
“I’m so sorry I had to pull out tonight. I was hoping to overcome this stomach illness that showed up yesterday and tried everything I could to be able to play tonight, until the very last moment. Hoping to come back stronger in a couple of days and come back here to Mexico next year. Thanks for now, Acapulco!”
Interestingly, Ruud had joked about food poisoning the previous year, saying he would avoid unwashed vegetables if he were on a winning streak in 2025.
“Next year if I’m on kind of a winning streak I’m not gonna eat vegetables that are not cleaned good enough.”
These three were not the only players facing difficulties, albeit they were the only ones to withdraw or retire.
Reports indicated that top-seeded Alexander Zverev also struggled with stomach issues, losing to Learner Tien in two sets, 6-3, 6-4, in the ATP 500 event.
Alex Michelsen, who lost to Denis Shapovalov 4-6, 3-6, reportedly faced similar stomach issues, according to Canadian tennis journalist Stephen Boughton.
While Zverev and Michelsen have not confirmed their health struggles, the prevalence of stomach illnesses among players makes it plausible they were affected.
Another journalist, Ben Rothenberg, confirmed he has also been ill, suggesting a significant problem at this year’s Mexican Open.
“For what it’s worth, I’ve also been sick since Monday night here, and it has not been fun, but this job is less physically demanding than playing tour-level tennis.”