The last hero of Argentina’s historic consecration of the 2016 Davis Cup who was still active hung up his racket. Federico Delbonis retired. And she did it in front of his people, on the brick dust of the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis and next to a friend.
The 33-year-old from Azulejo, who received an invitation to play the doubles draw at the Argentina Open, fell alongside Facundo Bagnis 6-4 and 6-2 against the Spanish Roberto Carballes Baena y James Munar. Thus he put an end to a career of more than fifteen years.
🎾 Federico Delbonis fell in the doubles at the IEB+ Argentina Open and said goodbye to professional tennis in front of his audience. He will always be remembered for giving the Davis Cup to our country.
THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING, FAITH! 👏 pic.twitter.com/01JrNBcZkM
— TyC Sports (@TyCSports) February 14, 2024
After the last point, aware of the moment he was living, he hugged his teammate tightly and then began to feel the warmth of the public that gathered on the Buenos Aires night: applause and shouts that chanted ‘Fede, Fede’, while some fan he exclaimed, reminding him of his success at Davis.
In the subsequent press conference, ‘Delbo’ stated that it is “a healthy” and “correct” decision, since his “daily and unbearable pains” They prevented him from training at the highest level.
“Being here makes you want to continue playing, but the reality is that I don’t have the physical tools to continue doing so in a calendar year”he acknowledged.
This Wednesday, starting at 8:00 p.m. at the Guillermo Vilas court, the central court of Lawn Tennis, there will be a well-deserved tribute from the organization and the public, as happened in the Davis Cup series against Kazakhstan, in Rosary beads.