Top 3 players of the 2020 ATP Latin American Golden Swing

The ATP Latin American Golden Swing is a series of four ATP clay court tournaments in Latin America held in the month of February every year. The term 'Golden Swing' is in honour of Chilean Olympic gold medallists Nicholas Massu and Fernando Gonzalez.

The series first came into being in 2001 with tournaments in Vina del Mar (Chile), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Costa do Saipe (Brazil), and Acapulco (Mexico).

After Acapulco transitioned from clay to hardcourt in 2014, the Golden Swing series in 2020 comprised of the 4 tournaments in Cordoba (Argentina), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), and Santiago (Chile). On that note, let us have a look at the top 3 players of this season's Latin American Golden Swing.

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#3. Thiago Seyboth Wild (Winner in Santiago)

Thiago Seyboth Wild celebrates his first career title at 2020 Santiago.

With only two wins against his name entering the 2020 Santiago Open as a wildcard, Brazilian teenager Thiago Seyboth Wild beat Facundo Bagnis, Juan Ignacio Londero, Cristian Garin, Renzo Olivo, and Casper Ruud in successive matches to lift his first career singles title.

In the process, Seyboth Wild became the youngest player from Brazil to win a singles title and the youngest player since a certain Rafael Nadal (2005 Acapulco) to win a title on the Latin American Golden Swing. The Brazilian teenager's 6-1 start to the season is only shaded by world no. 1 Novak Djokovic who is 18-0 for the season after winning his 5th Dubai Open title.

After falling in the qualifiers of the Cordoba Open, Seyboth Wild beat Alejando Davidovich Fokina 7-5 in the third set and fell to fifth seed Borna Coric in a third set tiebreak in the second round before his title run in Santiago.

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#2. Casper Ruud (Winner in Buenos Aires, runner-up in Santiago)

Casper Ruud lifted his first career singles title at 2020 Buenos Aires.

Making his 2020 Latin American Golden Swing bow at Buenos Aires, Casper Ruud respectively beat Pablo Andujar, Ricardo Carbaelles Baena, Dusan Lajovic, Juan Ignacio Londero, and Pedro Sousa to become the first Norwegian player to lift an ATP singles title.

The title run helped Ruud surpass his father Christian (no. 39) to break into the top 35 of the ATP rankings for the first time in his career.

Following a straight set defeat to Gianluca Mager in the first round at the Rio de Janeiro Open, Ruud continued his good form in the Golden Swing at the inaugural Santiago Open where he saw off local hope Alejandro Tabilo, Federico Delbonis, and Albert Ramos-Vinolas in straight sets to reach the final.

In the title match against wildcard Thiago Seyboth Wild, Ruud won eight points in a row to force a second set but couldn't complete his comeback as the Brazilian teenager recovered to win his first career singles title while denying Ruud his second.

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#1. Cristian Garin (Winner in Cordoba and Rio de Janeiro)

Cristian Garin lifted his second title of the 2020 Golden Swing at the Rio Open.

After recovering from a set down to beat local hope Diego Schwartzman in the final of the first Golden Swing tournament of the season in Cordoba, Cristian Garin lifted the biggest title of his career at the ATP 500 Rio de Janeiro Open.

Garin needed a third set tiebreak to see off Andrej Martin before further wins over Federico Delbonis, Federico Coria, Borna Coric, and Italian qualifier Gianluca Mager enabled him to lift his 4th career singles title (all on clay).

In the process, the Chilean emulated Gustavo Kuerten (2001), Gaston Gaudio (2005), Rafael Nadal (2005, 2013), Nicolas Almagro (2008, 2011), Tommy Robredo (2009), Juan Carlos Ferrero (2010), David Ferrer (2012), and Pablo Cuevas (2016) as the only players to lift multiple Golden Swing titles in a season.

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