Renata Zarazúa returns the illusion to Mexico in tennis after beating a World Top Top

“I’m afraid, mom, I don’t want to go out to play,” Renata Zarazúa told her mother on the phone just before she won the game of her life. The 27 -year -old tennis player has made history this Tuesday by becoming the first Mexican to defeat a TOP TEN world. On the central court of the American Open in New York, Zarazúa defeated Madison Keys, number six in the world, in more than three hours of play. Thus, Zarazúa makes its way in a sport in which Mexico expects, for decades, a reason to dream.

Zarazúa (82 of the world) had already competed in the Australia Open, the Roland Garros, Wimbledon and in the US Open, but this was the first time he did in Arthur Ashe, the main and most emblematic stadium of the American open. “It’s so immense, so great, it is very difficult to feel comfortable playing there,” said the tennis player.

In addition to the intimidating stage, the task seemed impossible. Keys, champion of the Australian Open this year, was the clear favorite. Zarazúa lost the first set and started down in the second, but recovered to win it, out of his rival, which he hoped to win easily. The difference of almost 20 centimeters of stature between both players was not enough to stop the Mexican, who defended himself tirelessly, forcing Keys to make mistakes at key moments. “I had a lot of courage for that first set, it was very difficult to forget it, so the whole game was like a battle against myself and that’s why in the end I released it. It depended on their mistakes, but you have to be prepared to answer when they arrive,” said the tennis player after winning the game.

The triumph is the confirmation of the promise that had been made, to overcome the achievements that conquered the previous year. In 2024 he entered the number 98 of the Ranking of the Female Tennis Association (WTA) and participated in the four Grand Slams in a single season, breaking an absence of almost three decades in those tournaments for Mexican tennis. Fulfilling his promise, he left his mark in January, when he became the first Mexican to move on to the second round at the Australian Open. Now, in New York, he scored a before and after.

The road has not been simple. Born in Mexico City, he wears racket and ball in his hands since he was three years old. “I didn’t want to work on anything other than tennis,” he said about his career. To pursue his dream, at 15 he moved to the United States, aware that in Mexico he would not find the infrastructure or sponsors necessary to become a professional. He came to fall near the 400th place in the world ranking when he suffered a breakage of the meniscs.

His career began to take off in 2020, when he reached the semifinals of the Mexican Open of Acapulco and debuted in Roland Garros. A year later, he represented Mexico at Tokyo’s Olympic Games. Neither in Paris nor in Japan managed to advance beyond the initial rounds, but his discipline did not stop until he reached 2024, when he finally took the leap.

The Zarazúa surname was already registered in Mexican tennis. His grandmother Rosario and his father Alejandro were players; His uncle Vicente shone in the sixties and seventies, when he won medals in Pan American Games, he participated in the 1968 Olympics and was part of the Davis Cup team. Renata collects that legacy and takes it to new heights. “What are you doing when you don’t play tennis?” They asked after beating Keys. “Find a way of playing tennis,” he replied.

His victory against Keys represents more than a personal triumph, it is a breath of fresh air for tennis in Mexico, which has seen how international tennis developed without national figures. His feat echoed quickly. “He beat the American Madison Keys in the first round of the US Open, congratulations,” said President Claudia Sheinbaum at the press conference on Tuesday.

This Wednesday Zarazúa will play the second round in front of the French Diane Parry, who has already expired the two occasions they have faced. Zarazúa will not settle for the victory against Keys, but whatever happens in the next round, his name has already registered in the history of Mexican tennis.