"Reaching the top 100 is what obsesses me the most right now," says Buse, semifinalist in Gstaad
Ignacio Buse had an impressive run at the ATP 250 tournament in Gstaad last week. Arriving in Switzerland without ever having won a single main-draw match on the ATP Tour, the 21-year-old Peruvian managed to qualify.
He then continued his momentum, defeating Djere, Majchrzak, and Burruchaga in succession before falling to Juan Manuel Cerundolo just short of the final.
Now ranked a career-high 133rd in the world, Buse has become the third player from his country to reach the semifinals of an ATP tournament in the 21st century. In recent hours, before losing in the first round in Kitzbühel to Arthur Cazaux, he gave an interview to Clay, reflecting on his progress and his goals for the coming weeks.
"I try to enjoy it as much as possible. Every player goes through different processes. I try to approach each tournament in a way that makes the losses hurt less each time.
Of course, I try to prioritize the matches that mean the most to me personally—the Grand Slam tournaments. I still haven’t managed to turn things around or win a match in those qualifying draws. It hurts.
I know I need to handle that pain and frustration better. But I’m gaining new experiences and new wins, and that’s really positive. In recent weeks, I think I’ve had very tough draws against players more experienced than me.
In Australia, I played against (Dominik) Koepfer and lost 7-6 in the third set of the first qualifying round. At Roland-Garros, I faced (Yannick) Hanfmann, who plays very well on clay.
Then at Wimbledon, I played (Arthur) Cazaux, a really tough opponent. Honestly, I think I held my own. I had chances in every match. Tennis is so mental...
I haven’t managed to win in Grand Slam qualifiers, but I won my first Challenger a few weeks ago in Heilbronn, and that made me incredibly happy. I know I can keep going.
I hope to keep progressing little by little in the coming months. Reaching the top 100 is what obsesses me the most right now," Buse shared recently.
