It took him five years, but Spanish tennis player Feliciano Lopez finally had another chance to lift a title in the ATP circuit. Lopez won the South African Open final against Frenchman Stephane Robert 7-5, 6-1 in one hour and 13 minutes. His last ATP World Tour title was in 2004 at the Vienna tournament in a final against Guillermo Cañas. The Spaniard lost the three finals he had disputed since then.
Before qualifying for the final, Lopez beat the tournament favorite, Frenchman Gael Monfils, in a difficult match in three sets.
In his final against Robert, on the center court of Club Montecasino at Johannesburg, Lopez was very confident with his service throughout the match, not giving a single opportunity for the Frenchman to break his serve. Robert, meanwhile, seemed at Lopez’s mercy 12 times; his serve was broken on three occasions, first in the final game of the first set – giving Lopez more confidence – and twice in the second set.
During the first set, Lopez was constantly pressuring his opponent, enjoying a solid winning service with 76% and 80% of points played with his first and second serve, generating multiple opportunities. However, Lopez couldn’t manage a break until the end of the set, taking the difference needed to get ahead on the board and eventually winning the set 7-5.
The second set proved much easier for Lopez, who dominated the action from start to finish. His control and performance were so good that he won 71% of the total points in the set. And with two breaks in his favor, Lopez took the set easily with a 6-1 victory. At the end, the Spaniard raised his hands in triumph, celebrating the second title of his career.
At the end of the match, Lopez said he was happy with his performance, despite being somewhat nervous after losing several good opportunities in the first set. He was also astonished at the great support he had received during the match.
“I had everything to lose and Stephane had nothing to lose so it is a great feeling to succeed. Some missed opportunities in the first set angered me, but it all came together in the end. The support for me here, so many thousands of kilometers from home, was amazing,” stated Lopez
Stephen Robert, on the other hand, acknowledged that Feliciano gave a better performance during the match; nonetheless, he was pleased to have gotten into a hard court final, a challenge for him as he is better in clay.
“Feliciano was better today with his unbelievable service and I lacked confidence, but this has been an amazing week for me. I received many messages of support from my area and club and I look ahead with great hope. I am known as a clay court player but now I believe I can also do well on hard courts at altitude.”
With the victory, Feliciano Lopez added 250 points to his standings the rankings, winning $75,000 and climbing six places in the rankings from world No. 39 to world No. 33.
Lopez’s South Africa tournament followed an excellent performance at the Australian Open. The Spaniard now has an in for the next Masters 1000 tournaments in the North American tour.
About the Author
Ally White has been a prominent writer on daily ATP Tennis Games; sports news and the sports betting industry for many exceptional sport web sites. You may reprint this article in its full content, please note no modifications to it are accepted.
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