Faced with Frances Tiafoe who refused to go away, Flavio Coboli dug down and found another outfit. The 23-year-old Italian defeated Tiafoe 7-6(4), 6-4 in the Telemex Mex final in Acapulco on Saturday to win his third career title and first on hard courts.
Coboly, who climbed to a career-high No. 15 in the ATP Rankings on Monday, has a strong forehand. He spent most of the night hitting winning shots from incredible positions on the field to keep the momentum going in tight games. It’s a bitter loss for Tiafoe, who was seeking his first career ATP 500 title a week after his “Houdini” escape.
Tiafoe saved two match points against Alexander Kovacevic in the last 16, but his luck will run out against Koboli in Saturday’s final.
In the semifinals, Coboli defeated Miomir Kekmanovic and Tiafoe defeated Brandon Nakajima. The two experienced a three-set marathon in the semifinals, but the two still launched a fierce battle in the first set that lasted more than an hour. Coboli didn’t face a single break point in the first set and showed veteran composure as she trailed 3-1 in the tiebreak.
The Italian broke serve in the second game but was reversed in the eighth game as the Acapulco crowd roared for a decider. However, Copoli did not let the American player’s momentum inflate. He immediately counterattacked and quickly ended the game. He won 34 matches and became the first Italian to win the ATP title in 2026.
With the victory, Coboli became the fourth player born in the 2000s to win the ATP 500 title on different surfaces, joining Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Arthur Fels.
Coboli, 23 years and nine months old, is the youngest player to win in Acapulco since Dominic Thiem a decade ago.
