Guillermo Garcia-Lopez overcame a determined Jarkko Nieminen 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 to win the Thailand Open yesterday and clinch the second title of his career.
The unheralded Spaniard showed the same spark and resilience he used to conquer world No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals a day earlier to triumph over the Finn in a tense and thrilling battle of two unseeded players.
Either could have won, with Garcia-Lopez saving a flurry of break-points and chasing every ball and Nieminen dictating the match from the baseline with flawless, powerful returns, but it was a combination of fortitude and resolve that gave the Spaniard the edge and he fended off Nieminen’s stunning final-set fightback to take his second title from only three final appearances.
Photo: EPA
“It’s been an unbelievable week, I can’t find the words to say what I feel inside,” Garcia-Lopez told reporters. “Yesterday, I beat Rafa Nadal and I knew it would be just as tough to win again. It was a 50-50 match, he played really well, I played really well, but I did it best in the final set.”
Garcia-Lopez made his break in the seventh game of the first set, chasing after a seemingly irretrievable drop-shot and responding with a better one of his own to stun Nieminen.
Nieminen looked impressive throughout and came out fighting in the second set, utilizing his fierce backhand and relentlessly whacking the ball into all corners of the court to test the world No. 53 and level the score.
The deciding set was a thriller and went down to the wire, with Nieminen refusing to quit at 5-4 down and saving a string of match-points when Garcia-Lopez had one hand on the trophy.
However, the Finn could hold him off no longer in a marathon final game. He landed a tame second serve that the Spaniard smashed into the corner of the court with Nieminen stranded.
“He was serving, he had the initiative, but he missed his first serve and it was up to me to find that winner,” Garcia-Lopez said.
MALAYSIAN OPEN
AFP, KUALA LUMPUR
In-form Mikhail Youzhny followed up his US Open semi-final showing by winning the Malaysian Open yesterday, coming from a set down to beat Andrey Golubev 6-7 (7/9), 6-2, 7-6 (7/3).
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The victory is a major boost for fourth seed Youzhny, the world No. 9, who is bidding for one of eight places at the ATP World Tour Finals in London next month.
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