Australian Alex de Minaur has secured his 10th ATP Tour title in stunning fashion, saving three championship points on his way to a thrilling 5-7, 6-1, 7-6 (7-3) victory over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina at the Washington Open.
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De Minaur, who defeated Corentin Moutet in the semi-final and moved up to eighth in the world with Monday’s win, looked to be in trouble after falling into an early 5-2 hole in the third set.
He was able to steady but then found himself staring down three championship points late in the set, only to break from 30-0 down at 5-4 and force a tiebreak.
De Minaur was agonisingly close to defeat on the third match point when he kept the match alive with a lob that caught the line and stayed in by just 16 millimetres, giving the Australian enough time to recover and claim the point.
De Minaur then held his nerve to claim the final, having come up short in Washington against Alexander Zverev when the Australian was just 19 years old.
De Minaur saved four match points against Andrey Rublev earlier in the tournament that year and said in his post-match speech there is “something about his court”.
“I just kind of knew I could do it,” he added.
“I just backed myself and I told myself to commit no matter what and if I lost this match it was going to be on my terms. Today it went my way. I’ve had a couple of brutal ones not go my way, so I’m glad this one went my way.”
A visibly devastated Davidovich Fokina buried his head in his towel after the match before a classy de Minaur consoled his opponent.
“I want to start with Alejandro, as I told you and your team, you’re way too good to not have one of these,” de Minaur said after the match.
“It’s coming for sure. You deserved it today. I just got lucky. As I said, you are a hell of a competitor and player. No one on the tour wants to play you.
“This is not the end. It’s only going up for you.”
Davidovich Fokina, meanwhile, paid credit to de Minaur, admitting the Australian “deserved the win”.
“He was fighting every f***ing ball,” he added, referencing de Minaur’s incredible stamina and court coverage.
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