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Forlan beaten on pro tennis debut

 Retired footballer, Di­ego Forlan, lost 6-1 6-2 in 47 minutes on his profes­sional tennis debut in a doubles event in his native Uruguay.

The former Manchester Unit­ed and Atletico Madrid striker, 45, and Argentine partner Federi­co Coria lost to Bolivian pair

Boris Arias and Federico Zeballos after receiving a wild­card for the Uruguay Open in Montevideo.

The tournament was on the ATP Challenger Tour the level below the main ATP Tour.

Both pairs held serve to start the match, but Arias and Ze­ballos quickly pulled away after earning a break in the third game of the first set.

Despite loud support for Forlan, the second set followed in similar fashion with Forlan and Coria struggling to compete in their opponents’ service games and not earning a break point.

Forlan was a promising junior tennis player in his youth and re­turned to playing more regularly following his 20-year football career.

He played with friends in the Montevideo club league and made his debut on the ITF Mas­ters Tour in 2023.

His partner Coria was 49th in the singles rankings last year and has previously reached the third round of the French Open. -BBC

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