In Melbourne, in southeastern Australia, the 22-year-old triumphed over the 35-year-old veteran in straight sets, scoring 7-6 (7-5) and 6-3 after one hour and 37 minutes.
The match started evenly, and it was only in the tie-break of the first set that the Lisbon native, ranked 151st in the world, managed to get the upper hand over the 130th-ranked Trungelliti.
Trungelliti, the 18th seed in the Australian Open qualifiers, appeared to be affected by the setback and started poorly in the second set, allowing Faria to break the Argentine’s serve in the first two games. With both players struggling with their serves, it was ultimately the Lisbon player who closed out the match.
Faria is the third Portuguese player to reach the main draw of the Australian Open, joining Nuno Borges in the men’s singles and Francisco Cabral in the men’s doubles, partnered with Austrian Lucas Miedler.
The main draw for the men’s and women’s singles will take place today at 14:30 (03:30 in Lisbon), while the doubles draw is scheduled for Saturday at 15:00 (04:00 in Lisbon). Main draw matches for the Australian Open start on Sunday and continue until February 1.
Platform with Lusa
