Etcheverry and the madness of dedicating himself to tennis: "I went into debt"
The elite of tennis, like any professional sport, has its privileges, but there is also a background with many of these players where they had to carry out a series of efforts and sacrifices to become the best players in the world. And while many fall by the wayside, those who succeed have also had to give up many things. This is the case of Tomás Martín Etcheverry.
The Argentine, in an interview with La Fábrica Podcast, confessed how his beginnings were and, above all, the risky decision he made with his parents when he was just a child: “I went to school until I was 12 years old. At that time, I had 120 absences for competing: it was unsustainable. There are several players who were able to finish school and are in the top 100. I went straight to tennis and today I think I could have done a couple of more years.”
Tomás Martín Etcheverry currently ranks 31st in the ATP rankings
The 27-year-old player explained the reasons that led him to this decision, which in turn had economic consequences: “I felt a lot of pressure for having given up everything. I was a 12-year-old kid and my parents helped me make the decision. We had to go out and look for sponsors to support my career: I went into debt and in my mind, I started to think that I had to win to pay back the money”.
Tomás Etcheverry, sobre los sacrificios para ser tenista profesional. "Hice el colegio hasta los 12 años. En ese momento tuve 120 faltas por competir: era insostenible" "Hay varios jugadores que pudieron terminar el colegio y están en el top 100. Yo fui directo al tenis y hoy pienso que pude haber hecho un par de años más" "Tenía mucha presión por haber dejado todo. Era un chico de 12 años y la decisión me ayudaron a tomarla mis viejos" "Tuvimos que salir a buscar sponsors para bancar mi carrera: me endeudé y en mi cabeza empecé a pensar que había que ganar para devolver el dinero" La Fábrica Podcast https://t.co/oqQ3Y6PB6C
— Pablo Amalfitano (@amalfitanopablo) October 7, 2026
The bet was risky, but it worked out, and today Tomás Martín Etcheverry is number 31 in the world, having reached number 25 last May. And on his resume, there is already one title: the ATP 500 of Rio de Janeiro 2026. His best result in Grand Slams has been reaching the quarter-finals at Roland Garros 2023 and the round of 16 at the latest US Open.
This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Etcheverry y la locura de dedicarse al tenis: "Me endeudé"