Alexander Zverev seemed to be cruising in the third set of his quarter-final match at the 2025 Rio Open, but he lost a comfortable lead and the match.
Zverev lost in his quarter-final match at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires. As an ATP 250 event, he had a first-round bye as the top seed and needed to win only one match to reach the quarter-finals.
In Rio, Zverev did not enjoy a first-round bye, necessitating the need to win two matches to reach the quarter-finals, which he accomplished.
Without Holger Rune in the draw, Zverev was the favorite to win the title in Brazil, but his quarter-final opponent was Francisco Comesana, ranked 86th in the world.
Comesana reached the quarter-finals in Rio by defeating Gustavo Heide and Nicolas Jarry in three sets. Zverev was the Argentinian’s highest-ranked opponent and only the second Top 10 player he has faced.
In his first match against a Top 10 player, Comesana defeated Andrey Rublev 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 7-6(5) at last year’s Wimbledon, and he aimed to replicate that success against Zverev.
Zverev started the match strong, breaking in the opening game. Although he lost his advantage in the fourth game and fell behind 2-3, he regained control, winning the first set 6-4.
However, Comesana fought back in the second set, playing nearly flawlessly. He faced no break points until serving for the set, having broken Zverev’s serve at 3-2. After saving two break points, he converted his fourth set point to win the second set 6-3.
It seemed Comesana ran out of steam in the third set. Zverev was in complete control, winning 12 of the first 16 points to lead 3-0, eventually going up 4-1.
That’s when Comesana launched an incredible comeback, winning 22 of the next 27 rallies, which was remarkable considering Zverev’s earlier dominance.
Comesana took five games in a row, turning the third set around to clinch the match 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, reaching the semi-finals of the 2025 Rio Open. For Zverev, his Golden Swing concluded with a disappointing second quarter-final loss.
