From a comeback beginning to a comeback ending, Vachero clinched the championship and created an immortal legend.

It is widely recognized that in men's tennis, besides Grand Slams which use a best-of-five format, other tournaments are played as best-of-three sets. Therefore, players who take the first set usually have an advantage in securing the final victory.

Nevertheless, exceptions exist. For instance, last week a player frequently pulled off stunning reversals and eventually forged his own timeless legacy. So, who exactly is this player? What is the story behind it? Let this article take you through it.

This player is Monaco’s Vachero. Last season, he achieved a 15-match winning streak in Challenger events, capturing three consecutive Challenger titles. Because of this, many tennis fans began to notice him. However, since the start of the 2025 season and before this week, despite earning his first Masters-level win in his career, Vachero remained largely unnoticed due to his world ranking being well outside the top 200.

Two weeks ago, due to numerous high-ranked players withdrawing, Vachero was able to enter the Shanghai Masters qualifying rounds. In the first round of qualifying, he faced American Basavareddy, a former Challenger champion. Basavareddy took the first set in a tiebreak, gaining an early advantage. However, Vachero fought back to win the next two sets, overturning the match and advancing with difficulty. Perhaps even Vachero himself did not expect this to be just the beginning of his comebacks.

In the final qualifying round, Vachero again lost the first set but then won two consecutive sets to defeat Canadian player Draxler, earning a spot in the Shanghai Masters main draw. In the first round of the main event, he faced Serbian player Djere. Vachero performed exceptionally, allowing his opponent only seven games throughout the match and securing his second career Masters victory.

In the second round, his opponent was Asia’s top player, Bublik. In the 2025 season, Bublik had already won four tour titles. In the first set, Bublik dominated to win 6-3. However, Vachero responded with a 6-3 win of his own in the second set. In the decisive set, when the score was close, Vachero broke Bublik’s serve. After that, he gave no chances and quickly closed out the match by winning his service game, completing his third comeback victory in Shanghai and securing the win. Notably, this was not only Vachero’s first career win over a top 20 player but also his first consecutive wins in a Masters main draw.

The magic continued! In the third round against Czech player Machac, after taking the first set and leading significantly in the second, Machac retired due to physical issues. In the fourth round, Vachero once again came from behind to beat Dutch player Griekspoor, reaching his first career Masters quarterfinal. He also became the first Monaco tennis player to reach the quarterfinals of a Masters event.

In the quarterfinals, facing former Masters champion Danish player Rune, Vachero once again lost the first set but rallied to win the next two. Unconsciously, Vachero had completed five comeback victories in Shanghai. Objectively speaking, he truly deserves the title “King of Comebacks.”

In the semifinals, he convincingly defeated Serbian star Djokovic, who has won the Shanghai Masters four times, advancing to the final. In the final, Vachero’s opponent was French player Lindeknech. Coincidentally, these two players are cousins. This marked the first time in Masters history that cousins faced each other in the final.

In this final match, Vachero remained unstoppable. Despite losing the first set, he won the next two sets to complete the comeback and claim his first Masters title. This also marked his sixth comeback victory in Shanghai.

After a streak of nine consecutive wins, Vachero’s world ranking rose to 38th. This is his highest career ranking since joining the ATP professional circuit. That concludes today’s tennis story; more to come tomorrow.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Yixin Jushi)