Alejandro Tabilo is enjoying a fairytale run in Rome at the moment, having instantly shot into the public eye with his win over Novak Djokovic, but backed that up with subsequent successes over Karen Khachanov and now Zhang Zhizhen.
The 26-year-old, born in Canada, would have been a relative unknown to most casual fans, given he has just one title to his name and has only just reached a career-high ranking of 32 in the world.
His career thus far has been solid if unspectacular, but this current bout of form has been sensational.
Now faced with Alexander Zverev for a chance to reach the final of this illustrious event, already Tabilo deserves credit for the history he has made.
Alejandro Tabilo told what history he has just made
Speaking to Prakash Amritraj immediately after his triumphant win over Zhizhen, the Chilean tennis star was buoyed by continuing his mesmeric run to reach the Rome Open semi-finals.
It marked his best-ever run at a Masters 1000 tournament, which the interviewer would quickly note to him: ‘You’ve made history here. You’re the first Chilean since 2009 to make the semi-finals at a Masters 1000-level event. That’s massive stuff. How big is the sport back home?’
Tabilo was more than happy to answer, telling Tennis Channel: ‘Definitely very big. It’s been, I mean from what I’ve heard from my friends it’s been crazy over there with all the news. Definitely, obviously football is first over there and then I would say tennis comes second.
‘For them, it means a lot, especially after [Nicolas] Massu, [Fernando González] and [Marcelo] Ríos. It’s been one of the biggest sports so it’s also nice to see so many people are there supporting and always sending good vibes, messages. It’s been very nice, all this new exposure.’
Alejandro Tabilo has quietly enjoyed a stunning 2024
Whilst it was noted earlier that Tabilo might have slipped under the radar for most, he has actually been quietly enjoying a fine 2024.
Kickstarting his year at the ASB Classic, he overcame challenges from Cameron Norrie (admittedly by walkover) and Arthur Fils to win the competition, his maiden ATP title, having only made his way into the tournament as a qualifier.
This helped him fast-track his career massively, breaking into the top 50 before he continued to capitalise by reaching the final in his home tournament, the Chile Open.
This promising start to the season had shocked many, but few could possibly have expected him to pull off upset after upset in Rome.
And with how he has dispatched many ways above him in the rankings, it would be foolish to bet against him even now, facing off against a similarly in-form Zverev. Tabilo’s coaching team’s actions during his win over Novak Djokovic have already turned heads once to showcase the support he has behind him.
What a contest it promises to be, but regardless Tabilo has already done supremely well to get this far.
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