Ferrer wins Bastad title
Ferrer wins Bastad title
Round-up:
David Ferrer triumphed 6-2 6-2 over fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro to
win the Swedish Open, while John Isner, Marin Cilic and Janko Tipsarevic
all also picked up titles.
Top seed Ferrer was far more effective on serve than the second seed Almagro in an encounter that lasted 67 minutes in Bastad.
Ferrer, who lost to Andy Murray in the quarter-finals of Wimbledon,
got 72 per cent of his first serves in in both sets while his opponent
could only manage an average of 51 per cent.Ferrer faced only one break point - and saved it - while Almagro saved two while being broken on four occasions.
It was world number five Ferrer's fifth title of 2012, putting him level with Roger Federer on that ATP Tour-leading number. He holds an 11-0 record over Almagro, including a victory in the 2007 Bastad final.
The world number 10 won the Swedish Open two years ago, while Ferrer lost to Robin Soderling in last year's final.
Top seed John Isner hit 16 aces as he beat Lleyton Hewitt to successfully defend his title at the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport.
As is so often the case, Isner’s big serve proved the difference between the two as he saw off Hewitt 7-6(1) 6-4 in one hour and 32 minutes.
Neither Isner nor Hewitt could take advantage of their one and only break point in the first set but it was the American who pulled away in the tie-break, sealing it on the first of his five set points.
The second set was slightly more straight-forward, Isner breaking Hewitt in the third game, before going on to wrap things up with his 16th ace, despite the Australian saving a match point on serve in the ninth game.
Marin Cilic became the first home player in 22 years to win the Croatia Open when he beat Marcel Granollers 6-4 6-2 in Umag.
Spaniard Granollers made a quick start to the clash and Cilic found himself 4-2 before reeling off nine straight games to take the first set and race out to a 5-0 lead in the second.
Granollers saved two match points in the sixth game of the second set before Cilic secured the win on the third with a forehand winner.
Janko Tipsarevic secured his maiden title on clay and also his first title of the year when he beat Juan Monaco 6-4 5-7 6-3 in Stuttgart.
Top-seeded Tipsarevic struggled with rain delays throughout the match, surrendering a 4-1 lead in the second set after a brief delay, and also dropping his serve after a 20-minute delay in the third.
But the Serb recovered quickly on both occasions and eventually wrapped up the win on his second match point when Monaco dumped a forehand into the bottom of the net.
