Rio Open final brings two of the sport’s rising stars into the spotlight

The 2019 Rio Open final brought two young stars in men’s singles together. It is Serbian Laslo Djere who takes home the title.

Laslo Djere walks away from the 2019 Rio Open with his first career ATP singles title. He defeats 18-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime in straight sets in a match that reveals the future of the sport. Winning 6–3, 7–5, the Serbian is projected to jump as high as the world number 37 ranking in men’s singles tennis this coming week.

It’s a bittersweet ending for the Canadian teenager. Despite his runner-up finish, Auger-Aliassime made headlines all week long and should be someone to watch moving forward.

Djere was the more confident of the two players during the final. We can be certain, however, that both players will continue to learn and grow throughout the rest of the 2019 ATP Tour. Djere kicked off his run at the Rio Open with a highly unexpected upset over the top seeded Dominic Thiem.

Defeating the Austrian tennis star in straight sets, Djere made a statement in the round of 32. He ousted Thiem with ease, winning 6-3, 6-3. Thiem was the tournament’s 2017 champion in men’s singles.

Making the 23-year-old’s title run at the Rio Open even more impressive was that he never dropped a single set all tournament long. This is hands down his best performance to date and he will remember it for the rest of his career. The week ahead is going to bring career highs that will catapult Djere in the short-term. Now, he just has to keep it up.

With the 2019 Rio Open coming to an end, Djere and others must look ahead to the remainder of the tour. There is no doubt that the Serbian will remember his win over Thiem and then the title run in Rio, but now he has a chance to prove that he can go even higher.