Monfils goes past Wawrinka to lift Rotterdam Open
ROTTERDAM:GAEL Monfils defeated good friend Stan Wawrinka 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 on Sunday to win his eighth career title at the Rotterdam Open.
Monfils, the runner-up three years ago, held off Wawrinka’s second-set surge to ease through the decider. Wawrinka, the 2015 champion in the Dutch port city who is continuing an 18-month comeback from double knee surgery, was playing in his first final since Roland Garros in June 2017.
It was the first championship match in 11 years at Rotterdam to feature two unseeded players. Monfils, 32, showed no hard evidence of the left wrist injury which has bothered him all week.
The world number 33 triumphed in one and three-quarter hours with four service breaks against three-time major winner Wawrinka as he claimed his first title since Doha last year.
MERTENS SHRUGS OFF PAIN TO BEAT HALEP
DOHA: Belgium’s Elise Mertens claimed the biggest win of her career on Saturday, surprisingly coming from a set down to beat world No 3 Simona Halep and clinch the Qatar Open.
The world No 21 won 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, despite being outclassed in the first set, overcoming an eightminute medical timeout for back pain in the second set, and losing 18 consecutive points at one stage in the match.
“It’s a big moment for me, get- ting that victory,” said a jubilant Mertens, 23, afterwards. “I think this one would be, especially also with my tennis I played, the nicest one, nicest victory.”
Mertens’ win, in a little over two hours, was her third victory over a top ten player in Doha this week, and her second over a Grand Slam champion.
SCHNUR TO FACE OPELKA IN FINAL
NEW YORK: Canadian qualifier Brayden Schnur punched his ticket to the ATP New York Open final by outlasting US journeyman Sam Querrey 7-6(7), 4-6, 6-3 on Saturday.
Schnur, a 23-year-old from Montreal ranked 154th in the world, defeated 10-time ATP titlewinner Querrey in one hour and 54 minutes in the semi-finals.
He will try to complete a fairytale championship run on Sunday against American Reilly Opelka, who outgunned top seed John Isner in three sets 6-7(8), 7-6(14), 7-6(4) in other semi-final.
THIEM KNOCKED OUT BY SCHWARTZMAN
BUENOS AIRES: Local favourite Diego Schwartzman recovered from a shaky start to overcome top seed Dominic Thiem 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(5) and set up a final showdown with Italy’s Marco Cecchinato at the Argentina Open. Schwartzman fought back from 4-2 down to force a tiebreak in the third set. The world No 19 held his nerve in a nail-biting tiebreak to condemn Thiem to his first loss in the Argentine capital.