In Acapulco, Mexico, an American teenager, Learner Tien, achieved a remarkable victory against the top-seeded Alexander Zverev with a straight-sets win, 6-3, 6-4, at the Mexican Open. This victory marks Tien’s second triumph over a top-five tennis player in his budding career. Earlier in January, during the Australian Open, the 19-year-old Californian made headlines by defeating Daniil Medvedev, who was ranked fifth at the time, en route to the fourth round.
Tien, a left-handed player, has managed to achieve what no one his age has done before by winning his first two matches against top-five opponents. Reflecting on his victory, Tien shared, “I just went out there and tried to control my side of the court. Obviously, I knew it was going to be a tough match. To come through feels great… I think just focusing on what I can control and keeping my cool as best as I can has really taken me a long way.” Tien’s next challenge will be against the eighth-seeded Tomas Machac, who secured his spot in the quarterfinals by defeating Daniel Altmaier 7-6 (3), 6-1.
Zverev’s early exit follows a series of tough matches in South America, where he faced a first-round defeat in Argentina and later exited in the quarterfinals in Brazil. The third day in Acapulco brought unexpected challenges as several seeded players withdrew due to illness. Holder Rune, ranked fourth, was among those affected, withdrawing from his match against Brandon Nakashima after falling behind 3-0 in the first set.
Nakashima now advances to play against David Goffin, who secured a victory over American Ben Shelton with a scoreline of 7-6 (3), 6-3. Rune expressed his disappointment on social media, “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.” As of now, tournament officials have not confirmed if Rune’s ailment was shared by other affected players. Second-seeded Casper Ruud also had to withdraw, unable to compete against Mexican Rodrigo Pacheco.
Among those falling ill was third-seeded Tommy Paul, who conceded his match against Marcos Giron, providing Giron with a walkover to the next round. In the quarterfinals, Giron is set to face Denis Shapovalov, who advanced with a 6-4, 6-3 victory against Alex Michelsen.
