Román Andrés Burruchaga outlasted Camilo Ugo Carabelli 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 in a topsy‑turvy first‑round clash at Umag. The Argentine won the opening set with two breaks, lost control in the second as his opponent levelled, then regained momentum in the decider by converting a decisive break at 5-3.
Burruchaga raced to a 4-2 lead in the first set before breaking again for 6-2, converting both his break points. Ugo Carabelli responded in the second, breaking twice – at 1-2 and 2-5 – to force a decider. The third set saw three breaks: Burruchaga went up 4-2, Ugo Carabelli immediately broke back for 4-3, but Burruchaga broke again at 5-3 to close out the match.
Burruchaga’s serving stood up when it mattered most: in the third set he saved 3 of 4 break points (75%), while striking four aces overall. He won 73% of first‑serve points in the opening set and 67% in the decider, out‑serving his opponent on the biggest points.