Marco Trungelliti and his mother Susana at the Rwanda Challenger.
Marco Trungelliti not only left Rwanda with his first ATP Challenger Tour trophy in almost five years, but also having just helped his mother achieve her lifelong dream: visiting Africa.
It could not have come at a better time for Susana, who has been grieving the loss of her mother, Lela, since her passing in November. When the 34-year-old Trungelliti won the second leg of the Rwanda Challenger — after falling in week one’s final — he and Susana shared a warm hug courtside. There were few words said, just raw emotion.
“I think it was just a happy moment for both of us,” Trungelliti told ATPTour.com. “It was a bit more emotional because the last time I won a tournament, [we were with] my grandmother, her mother.
“Since her mother passed away, she couldn’t really be happy of course because of her loss. This was the first time since I’ve seen her completely happy, not thinking about anything besides being in Africa, enjoying the people.”
To this day, Trungelliti recalls his mother sharing her passion to visit Africa when he and his two brothers Franco and Andre were children. “She was always telling us, ‘I want to go to Africa, I want to meet some people there and see the culture,'” he shared. “Years passing by, she couldn’t make it.”
Born and raised in Argentina, Trungelliti now resides in Andorra with his wife Nadir and one year old son Mauna.
Reuniting with his mother in Kigali, where Marco was also enjoying his first trip to Africa, served as a time of connection and healing for them. In addition to the pair of ATP Challenger Tour 50 events, they visited various parts of Rwanda’s capital city and crossed the continent off their bucket list.
“For me, it was just beautiful to see her there. I’m very glad she was enjoying it from the beginning. On top of that, I won the tournament,” he said.
“I think you get to know the people a little bit more when you are at sports events, they are more open to speak about the cultures and what they are used to.
“She doesn’t speak English, so she was using me as a translator. She was speaking with a lot of people just with signs. She would say, ‘Marco, can you help me with this please? I need a translator.’ She was very happy there from the very beginning. She was very emotional when we got there, very emotional when we left.”
After suffering a five-match skid in Challenger finals the past three years, Trungelliti was ready for another crack at claiming his third title at that level on Sunday.
In the corner, Susana had her eyes closed, praying for the best outcome. “Every time I was watching her, she was like — suffering,” he said with a laugh.
The Argentine, World No. 208 in the PIF ATP Rankings, was crowned champion, defeating Frenchman Clement Tabur 6-4, 6-2 in the final.
“It was great because it was the first time I was in back-to-back finals,” Trungelliti said. “That means for me mentally, it’s a great growth. Especially because every time I was winning a tournament, the very next one I was losing the first or second round, so my performance was going down quickly and I couldn’t maintain the level. But this one was very different.”
It was the perfect ending for the mother-son trip to Rwanda.
Trungelliti immediately hugged his mother and later began the trip home to Andorra, a 28-hour journey that featured a six-hour delay in Istanbul.
“We just hugged and enjoyed the moment,” Trungelliti said. “Almost immediately, she was thinking she has to leave Africa and she was asking, ‘When are there going to be some tournaments here so I can come back and bring the rest of the family?’” (End)