Player Features

Pacheco Mendez: History, butterflies & a teen's shot at Ruud

Lying on the court in relief, Rodrigo Pacheco Mendez was on the verge of tears after earning a hard-fought, three-hour win in front of his home fans Tuesday at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC.

With the Mexican capacity crowd proudly chanting and even bursting into Spanish song, it was a moment to remember for the 19-year-old, who became the youngest Mexican player to win an ATP Tour match since 1996 (Alejandro Hernandez, Santiago). Pacheco Mendez will next meet last year’s finalist and the No. 5 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, Casper Ruud.

“I have no words to describe what happened, I feel butterflies in my stomach, it was all very fast, it was an incredible emotion and more than anything the Mexican public how they supported me from point one to the last,” Pacheco Mendez said, according to Acapulco’s tournament website.

Mexico is hungry for a tennis superstar and as a former junior No. 1, Pacheco Mendez is a promising lefty. The #NextGenATP teenager, ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, hails from the Yucatán’s capital city Merida, which is hosting a WTA 500 event this week.

Driven by his father’s passion for tennis, Pacheco Mendez began playing the sport alongside his twin sister, Fernanda. ‘Rodri’ fondly remembers a pivotal four-week trip to Europe at age 12, when already among Mexico’s top talents, he sought to measure himself against international competition.

“I remember I didn’t speak English and we didn’t have too much money. My family made a big effort to send me to Europe, to raise the money was very difficult. I remember we ate pizza every day because it was the cheapest thing,” Pacheco Mendez told ATPTour.com last year.

Pacheco Mendez felt nervous about the unfamiliar faces and the language barrier as he embarked on this journey. Accompanied by his coach and a friend, he competed in tournaments across Slovenia, Italy, Austria and Croatia.

The only English phrase Pacheco Mendez knew was, ‘Hello, how are you?’ Nowadays, he speaks fluent English, having learned it through watching movies and extensive travel.

Pacheco Mendez vividly remembers celebrating his first victory that trip as if he had won the tournament — a moment that foreshadowed his success. He swept all four events, winning three singles titles and contributing to a team victory in Italy.

“It was a shock because a Mexican guy coming and winning the tournament against very good guys… It was crazy, it was like, ‘I think I have a chance to be professional'," said Pacheco Mendez, who is No. 276 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings.

“Then in my second year of 14s, we kept travelling to Europe and I got into the Top 10 players of Europe being Mexican. My highest ranking was seven, but I wasn’t a Europe guy. That was crazy because I didn’t play too many tournaments.”

A wild card in Acapulco, Pacheco Mendez’s win against World No. 66 Vukic marked the Mexican’s highest-ranked victory of his career and his second against a Top 100 player. Last year, he defeated then-No. 91 Thiago Agustin Tirante at the Morelos Challenger. Pacheco Mendez has reached two quarter-finals on the ATP Challenger Tour, the first of which fittingly came in Acapulco last April at the Arena GNP, the same venue that hosts the ATP 500 event.

^{Rodrigo Pacheco Mendez celebrates his 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(4) win against Aleksandar Vukic. Credit: Mextenis}

Although Pacheco Mendez is relishing an exciting week on home soil, there’s one passion he loves even more than competing with a racquet in hand.

“My favourite thing to do in the world is going to Universal Studios, Disney and theme parks with rides. If you ask me, ‘What do you prefer, a tournament or go to Universal, I will go to Universal'," Pacheco Mendez said.

“I go just for vacation. I’ve been to Universal in Orlando like four times, Disney in Orlando three times and Disney in LA [Los Angeles] just once.”

Now, instead of the thrill of roller coasters, Pacheco Mendez will embrace the excitement of one of the biggest stages of his career. The lone Mexican in the Acapulco singles draw, Pacheco Mendez will step onto stadium court to face 12-time tour-level titlist Ruud.

“I know I’m going to have a chance and I’m going to try to take advantage of it to make it a good match and have a surprise,” Pacheco Mendez said at a press conference. “But the truth is, that he is a much better player than me, one of the best in the world, and that will serve me well throughout my career.”

Should Pacheco Mendez shock the second seed, he would become the first Mexican man to earn a Top 5 win since 1986, when Leonardo Lavalle beat No. 5 Stefan Edberg in Philadelphia. Pacheco Mendez would become the first Mexican tour-level quarter-finalist since 1998, when Alejandro Hernandez reached the last eight on Mexico City’s clay courts.