Ruud, Machac joined in the Final Four by Goffin, Mannarino at UTS Guadalajara

Casper Ruud (Seed No.1), Tomas Machac (Seed No.2), Adrian Mannarino and David Goffin booked their spots in the semi-finals following the completion of Day 2 competition at UTS Guadalajara, the first stage of the 2025 UTS Tour.

It was a jam-packed Saturday schedule, with eight matches at the Panamerican Tennis Center – where UTS is making its first appearance in Latin America. Fans enjoying the action on the 7,500-capacity Center Court were treated to some incredible shot-making and multiple sudden-death situations.

Ruud and Machac lived up to their billing as the top seeds in Guadalajara and are certainly the top two title favorites heading into Sunday, when the semi-finals will be Ruud – Goffin (4 pm) and Machac – Mannarino (5 pm). Those matches will lead to a brand new final.

For the Norwegian, success in Mexico is nothing new. “I love playing tennis in Mexico,” Ruud assured. “It’s just great here. I came just over two years ago with Rafa to Mexico City to play an exhibition match, and after this moment I’ve had an incredible welcome in Mexico. I’m not sure if it’s because of this, or last year I played well in Los Cabos and Acapulco. So I’ve had some good results (in Mexico). It’s just great to be back and I’m looking forward for tomorrow.”

There will be no tomorrow at UTS Guadalajara for Richard Gasquet, who played his final match in Latin America before his upcoming retirement at Roland-Garros. A ceremony was held for Gasquet following his loss to Mannarino.

“It was incredible,” the 38-year-old said. “The fans were crazy; center court was packed. It was very emotional at the end of the match for me. Everybody was really nice. I will keep great memories being here, playing in Guadalajara. It was such a big experience for me.” He finished the night with a dramatic lap of honor.

There is no doubt that the toughest exit from UTS Guadalajara belonged to Cobolli. The 22-year-old lost both of his matches on Saturday in sudden death, first to Machac and then to Goffin. There was all to play for in the Cobolli – Goffin showdown, as the winner would go through while the loser would be eliminated.

Machac and Mannarino will play their first UTS Final Four, as they are part of their first UTS event. Ruud and Goffin already have the experience of a semifinal at UTS, but both lost at each of their appearances (Ruud at London 2023 and Oslo 2024, Goffin at UTS1 in 2020).

Group A

1. Casper Ruud 3-0, +61
2. Adrian Mannarino, 2-1 +14
   __________________________
3. Fabio Fognini, 1-2 -49
4. Richard Gasquet, 0-3, -26

Group B

1. Tomas Machac 3-0, +37
2. David Goffin 2-1, +7
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3. Flavio Cobolli, 1-2, +3
4. Jakub Mensik, 0-3, -47

Here’s a recap of Day 2 at UTS Guadalajara, which wrapped up round-robin action and set the Final Four lineup:

Group A : “Ice Man” Ruud cements status as the man to beat this weekend

Casper Ruud – “The Ice Man” – completed an undefeated run through Group A by following up Friday’s defeat of Adrian Mannarino – “Manna” – by winning two more matches on Saturday. Ruud rolled over Richard Gasquet – “The Virtuoso” – 17/11, 13/12, 17/14 and then eliminated Fabio Fognini – “Fogna” – 19/13, 21/9, 19/9.

In the final match of Group A, Fognini would have had to upset Ruud in three consecutive sets in order to have a chance of reaching the semi-finals. Once the Italian lost the opening quarter, it was Mannarino who officially advanced. Mannarino had put himself in strong qualifying position by beating Gasquet 18/12, 16/11, 15/17, 17/14 earlier in the night.

In the end, the second semi-final spot from Group A pretty much came down to the afternoon showdown between Mannarino and Fognini. Tournament officials consulted the VAR at the end of their match after the match point was replayed and ultimately counted Mannarino’s victorious point that the chair umpire had missed. Thus the contest ended 23-10, 21-10, 14-13 in the Frenchman’s favor.

“I’m really happy I got through,” the veteran lefty commented. “Casper was by far the best player of the group. But even if I lost yesterday, I knew that I would have a chance today. I knew I had a chance to win both (matches) – and that’s what I did.”

Group B : Goffin wins deciding match to join dominant “Air Machete” Machac in semis

The fourth and final semi-final spot came down to the last match on Saturday night. Fittingly, it went to sudden death. David Goffin – “The Wall” – won the first two points of the extra frame to beat Flavio Cobolli – “Il Gladiatore” – 14-13, 11-16, 12-15, 25-10, 2-0.

“It feels amazing,” Goffin commented, “especially in the night session, last match of the day, to finish in sudden death. The level was really good. I’m really happy. It was a great night.”

Nobody in Group B, though, could get the best of Tomas Machac – “The Air Machete.” Machac, who swept Goffin in three quarters on Friday, continued his dominant form by defeating both Cobolli and Jakub Mensik – “Menimal’ – on Saturday.

Cobolli, however, was extremely competitive against Machac. After splitting the four quarters 2-2, the Italian had a match point after winning the first point of sudden death. Nonetheless, Cobolli netted two forehands in a row – handing victory to Machac and clinching the group for the Czech. Machac then had little trouble beating an under-the-weather Mensik 17/10, 18/12, 13/16, 20/9.

Although Machac is undefeated, it hasn’t been easy. The 23-year-old has admitted during mid-match and post-match interviews that the altitude in Guadalajara is sapping his energy.

“I was feeling good at the beginning of this match,” he said after defeating Mensik. “But after that I completely lost it. The altitude is tough. But the atmosphere is great – almost a [full] stadium. Everyone is coming to cheer (for) us and we are trying our best.”

Championship Sunday schedule set: 

• Sunday afternoon session: 

Casper Ruud VS David Goffin : 4:00 pm
Tomas Machac VS Adrian Mannarino : 5:00 pm

Championship : 6:30 pm