Argentina captain Gonzalo Presson believes his young charges have showcased the “DNA of South America” after making it back-to-back victories on day two of the ITF World Junior Tennis Finals in Prostejov.

Roared on by Gonzalo Zeitune’s father, David, blowing a vuvuzela, Argentina’s boys recovered from 1-0 down to overcome China 2-1 and reach the quarter-finals along with fellow Group C outfit Croatia, who also claimed their second victory of the tournament by defeating Peru.

It was the second time in as many days that Argentina have been forced to fight back having lost the opening match, with Nahuel Nicolas Eli and Zeitune holding their nerve in the decisive doubles to overcome Jinpeng Tang and Minghui Zhang 6-1 6-4.

Earlier, Eli levelled matters by dispatching Tianhui Zhang 6-1 6-2 after China had struck the first blow of the clash as Jinpeng Tang beat Giuliano Furlotti 6-4 6-1. Presson believes his side’s fighting spirit is a major feather in their cap.

“We have suffered in both our opening ties by going 1-0 down but what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” he told iftennis.com. “This is something which is in the DNA of South Americans. We are fighters and I am so happy that my team are showing that on court.

“At this age, it is logical that the players will have some fears and doubts, but it is important for them to learn the process of handling such stress on court and they have shown the way to do that.

“By playing nations like China, who have a great tennis history, you learn so much. If you don’t learn at a tournament like this, where are you going to learn? It is so important to be able to adapt to certain situations, particularly when you’re under pressure, and this is all part of their development.

“Development is what we’re fully focused on. Today, this tournament is important for Argentina but my players want to be professionals. This is the first step.”

Another side to have secured a place in the quarter-finals are fifth seeds France, who chalked up their second 3-0 triumph of the tournament against Canada. Gabriel Debru and Antoine Ghibaudo prevailed in the singles, before Tiago Pires and Ghibaudo joined forces to seal doubles joy.

“We are lucky enough with this generation in France that there are eight to ten players that are good enough and could be part of this team,” France captain Boris Vallejo told itftenniscom.

“The players know there are a lot of others who would like to have been here. It is not easy to be selected and the players have to earn their selection and enjoy the experience.

“Our ambition, like most other teams, is to win the tournament. We are in the quarter-finals but we have a match to play tomorrow and we need to focus on this before we think about the quarters.

“We have been pretty solid during the singles. We have struggled at times but have fought, which I am happy about. We can always improve, however, and our players expect a lot from themselves.”

Something will have to give tomorrow when France play No.3 seeds Japan to determine who finishes top of Group B and advances to the knockout phase with their unbeaten record intact. Japan maintained their winning start to the Finals by defeating Egypt 2-1.

Questions still need to be answered in Group A, however. Hosts and top seeds Czech Republic remain the group’s frontrunners following a 2-1 win over Romania, although Brazil stormed back into contention courtesy of a 2-1 victory over Australia.

Brazil and Australia both have one victory each, while Romania remain within the qualification picture and can still reach the last eight despite consecutive losses. Brazil play Romania tomorrow, while Australia face Czech Republic, who were beaten finalists 12 months and are bidding to grasp their maiden ITF World Junior Tennis boys’ title.

The qualification conundrum has been resolved in Group D, with seeded nations USA and Bulgaria progressing to the last eight after sealing their second victories of the Finals. USA defeated Germany 3-0, while Bulgaria overcame Thailand 2-1.

Bulgaria’s clash was decided by a match tiebreak in the doubles. Viktor Markov and Ilyan Radulov maintained their composure to triumph 6-2 4-6 (10-7).