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You are here: Home / Features / No Trains, No Planes, But Yes an Automobile – “Lucky Loser” Marco Trungelliti is a Winner at Roland Garros After Long Road Trip back to Paris

No Trains, No Planes, But Yes an Automobile – “Lucky Loser” Marco Trungelliti is a Winner at Roland Garros After Long Road Trip back to Paris

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No Trains, No Planes, But Yes an Automobile – “Lucky Loser” Marco Trungelliti is a Winner at Roland Garros After Long Road Trip back to Paris

(May 28, 2018) No trains, no planes, but yes an automobile. Argentina’s Marco Trungelliti was making his way back to Barcelona with his mother, grandmother and younger brother after just being eliminated from the Roland Garros qualifying last week when he found out that he could get back into the draw as a lucky loser. A lucky loser is someone who lost in the final round of qualifying, but can replace those in the main draw who withdraw from the tournament, provided they sign in.

“I was quite relaxed, I guess. I mean, for me was perfect because I lost,” said the Argentine. “I left. I ate barbecue, which for Argentina is one of the main reasons to keep alive, I guess. And then I was relaxed. Like a normal thing.”

The man ranked 190th had to turn around and take his family back to Paris to get back in time to sign in on Monday morning. Since plane flights were canceled and the trains had a shaky schedule due to the strike, he got in a relatives’ rental car and made a 650-mile trek arriving at 11 p.m. Sunday night in Paris.

“We were at home with my family, actually, my brother and my grandma and my mom came a week ago. So supposedly they were going to come here but then I lost, so I left. Then they rent a car just to take a look in Barcelona or some other cities in Spain that is beautiful. And then my coach told me, Take a look, Safwat, the Egyptian who played yesterday, he’s playing right now, so maybe take a look. Ask if you are going to get in or whatever. So I ask, and then somebody told me that it was the first alternate.

“So actually, my grandma was in the shower, and I told her, Okay, we go to Paris,” he said. “There are many flights canceled, so I didn’t trust too much. And then there is no train now in France so the best option was always, was just take the car. It was good. Coffee after two hours. Eat. And then I had a dinner at 9:00 or something like that. So we arrived around noon at the club. Slept five hours, maximum. And then we came here 7:30 or something like that. But it was good, no? It’s beautiful, no?”

“So it was 10 hours(driving),” he said. “But for us, I mean, in Argentina, if you’re not living in Buenos Aires, then thousand kilometers is like nothing. You make thousand kilometers and there is no city between. So it wasn’t — it wasn’t a big deal for us. We got used to it, and then, yeah, we had highway, so it’s perfect.”

“Argentina, there is one — we call it the Ruta, it’s just one way and the other one is coming against you.
So you never know if you’re going to be alive after two hours driving.”

The 28-year-old signed in on time and won his first-round match at Roland Garros beating Bernard Tomic 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4. Reaching the second round means that the Argentine will get at least $90,000 dollars in prize money.

Meanwhile, his 88-year-old grandmother who knows little about tennis scoring was on hand to watch her grandson win the match.

“She has no idea what tennis is, really. She has no idea how to count it. And actually, she told me that she didn’t know that it was the end of the match until everybody was clapping. Yeah, she’s amazing. She’s turning 89 in one month. It’s amazing. Amazing.”

After all of that driving, was Trungelliti ready to play and could he believe that he was actually playing in the main draw of the French Open?

“So I think at least mentally I was ready to play. Physically, I had no idea. So in the end, it was good. I mean, I didn’t feel pressure at all, nothing. Because even I lost on Thursday here, so Friday I didn’t play. Saturday I didn’t practice. Sunday, nothing. So just today the warmup, and then we went to the court.”

Now 4-3 in major tournaments, he’ll play his second round match against 72nd-ranked Marco Cecchinato of Italy.

“I know it’s a good opportunity to continue to move on. The last two times I lost in the second round, so I really have to move on.

“I know that it’s an opportunity, and obviously the more tension you’re under, the more pressure you’re under, the less your chances. So now I’m going to have to start training again, resting, of course, and I’m sure we will meet again on Wednesday.”

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