PORTO, August 26, 2025
Pedro Araujo capped off Monday’s action at the CT Porto Cup with a stirring victory, becoming the first Portuguese player to advance in the main draw of the ATP Challenger Tour 75 clay-court event hosted by the Portuguese Tennis Federation at Clube de Tenis do Porto.
In the final match of the 13 scheduled encounters, World No. 489 Araujo produced a remarkable comeback to defeat Sweden’s Elias Ymer 5-7, 6-4, 7-5 after two hours and 49 minutes. Down 5-2 in the deciding set, the 21-year-old Portuguese showed grit and resilience to turn the match around against an opponent who once ranked as high as World No. 105.
Que vitória! Pedro Araújo vence os últimos cinco jogos e derrota Elias Ymer por 5-7, 6-4 e 7-5 para chegar à segunda ronda da CT Porto Cup. Um daqueles encontros épicos. pic.twitter.com/XufvKG1Omc
— Gaspar Ribeiro Lança (@gasparlanca) August 25, 2025
“Toward the end, I managed to hold myself together really well,” Araujo reflected in his press conference. “It was tough, but I tried to stay focused on the next game, and that made a big difference. At 5-3, I knew he would serve into the wind, and I trust my return, so I believed I had a chance. From there, I just tried to play point by point. It was very difficult, but what stood out was my fight and my desire to win.”
The victory was Araujo’s first at Challenger level since January at the Jamor event and marked a milestone as the first Portuguese triumph in this year’s CT Porto Cup main draw. He now faces 19-year-old Belgian Gilles-Arnaud Bailly in the second round on Wednesday. Bailly, a former junior World No. 1 and runner-up at both Roland Garros and the US Open juniors in 2022, cruised past Czech Maxim Mrva 6-1, 6-2 in his tournament debut.
Mixed Fortunes for Portuguese Players
Earlier in the day, Tiago Pereira looked poised to deliver Portugal’s opening main draw win, but ultimately fell short against Croatia’s Matej Dodig. After taking the first set, Pereira was overpowered as Dodig, a 20-year-old ranked No. 14 in the ATP Race to Jeddah, rallied to a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory. Competing in his seventh consecutive week, the 21-year-old from the Algarve admitted to some physical and mental fatigue following the loss.
Big Names Stumble on Day One
The first day of main-draw action also brought a major upset. Top seed and World No. 143 Thiago Seyboth Wild, a former top-60 player and Roland Garros sensation in 2020, crashed out with a 6-2, 6-4 defeat to Spain’s Nikolas Sanchez Izquierdo. The 291st-ranked Spaniard did not face a single break point in a commanding performance, extending Seyboth Wild’s struggles on Portuguese soil to three straight losses.
