Diego Schwartzman wins longest match in Buenos Aires tennis tournament’s history

Jewish player fights through injury to defeat opponent in nearly four-hour match, is forced to forfeit in semifinals

By JTA 17 February 2020, 12:33 am

Edit

Diego Schwartzman of Argentina in action during his Men's Singles fourth round match against Novak Djokovic of Serbia on day seven of the 2020 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 26, 2020 in Melbourne, Australia. (Fred Lee/Getty Images via JTA)

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Hometown hero Diego Schwartzman fought through a late groin injury to win a nearly four-hour quarterfinal match in the Buenos Aires Classic, but the Jewish player had to forfeit in the semifinals.

Schwartzman, the top seed, defeated Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas, 5-7, 7-6 and 7-5, on Friday night despite the injury in the last two games and earned a standing ovation. At 3 hours, 42 minutes, it was the longest match in the history of the Buenos Aires tournament.

It is not clear when he will return to the court.

“The doctors told me not to play,” said Schwartzman, who is No. 14 in the world rankings. “Any physical activity was going to leave me much longer outside the courts.”

He also said the recovery time will be between two and three weeks, which would keep Schwartzman out of tournaments in Brazil and Chile. His availability for the Davis Cup series on March 6-7 is questionable.