Ignacio Buse made tennis history Saturday by defeating Tommy Paul 7-6(6) 4-6 6-3 in the Hamburg Open championship match, becoming Peru’s first ATP Tour victor in almost two decades and preventing a complete American dominance of men’s clay court preparation tournaments before the French Open.
The 22-year-old qualifier secured his first professional tour championship and marked Peru’s first circuit victory since Luis Horna’s triumph at the Chilean Open in Vina del Mar in 2007, though the path to victory proved challenging.
During the back-and-forth championship match, Buse required medical attention for dizziness in the early stages and found himself down 4-0 in the second set, which he ultimately dropped, before surging ahead in the final set to stop sixth seed Paul from claiming his second championship of the year.
“It’s emotional for my family,” Buse said.
“So many people involved that I cannot describe. This is for them. I feel extremely happy. It’s the best feeling in my entire life for sure. I feel incredibly happy.
“I’m also really proud of Peru. It’s the best country in the world, so I’m just so emotional now.”
Paul’s defeat occurred shortly after Learner Tien mounted a comeback from one set behind in Geneva to defeat Argentine Mariano Navone 3-6 6-3 7-5 and capture his second ATP championship following Metz in 2025.
The 20-year-old fourth seed established himself as the youngest American male to claim a European clay court championship since his coach Michael Chang won the French Open title in 1989 at age 17.
American player Emma Navarro also prepared for Roland Garros with a confidence-building victory, claiming the Strasbourg championship by defeating top-seeded 19-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko 6-0 5-7 6-2 for her third career title.
“It’s kind of been a little bit of a rocky year and a half or so, but I think we’ve put in a lot of really good work,” said Navarro, who has battled injury and illness this season.
Paul, Tien and Navarro are among a 37-member group of American competitors — including qualifiers and wild cards — participating in the singles competitions at this year’s second Grand Slam tournament beginning in Paris on Sunday.
Buse starts his French Open journey against Russian Andrey Rublev while Paul faces Australian Rinky Hijikata and Tien meets Chilean Cristian Garin. Navarro will compete against Indonesia’s Janice Tjen in the women’s competition.
