WASHINGTON — France’s Gael Monfils saved a match point and battled back with sharp returns in sweltering heat to defeat Ivo Karlovic 5-7, 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 in Sunday’s Washington Open final.
The 29-year-old Frenchman took his sixth ATP title, his first since 2014 at Montpellier, first outside of Europe and first outdoor trophy since Sopot in 2005 as well as claiming the top prize of $348,200 (317,266 euro) on the US capital hardcourts.
“I’m very happy,” Monfils said. “It has been a good year so far. It’s a good step but hopefully I will have bigger.”
Monfils withstood a barrage of 27 aces from the 37-year-old Croatian, firing back 16 of his own. He ended Karlovic’s streak of 70 unbroken service games when the Croatian served for the match in the 10th game of the second set.
“If it was a normal match I would have won it right there,” Karlovic said. “At that moment, I just didn’t have it. I’m not used to that. Usually I’m able to just win it. Today I didn’t. I’m disappointed a lot.”
Flamboyant Monfils denied Karlovic on a match point in the second-set tiebreaker as well, broke him again in the third game of the final set and held from there to win in two hours and 13 minutes.
“Today was pure luck,” Monfils said. “It was a few opportunities, a few shots, and I managed to make it. It was just a few shots. It wasn’t like a regular win.”
Monfils became the third French player to win the Washington crown after Yannick Noah in 1985 and Arnaud Clement in 2006 and noted how Noah and 1973 winner Arthur Ashe were special inspirations to him.
Belgian seventh seed Yanina Wickmayer, a 2009 US Open semifinalist, defeated 122nd-ranked American Lauren Davis 6-4, 6-2, to capture her fifth WTA title and her first since last year in Tokyo.
“This has just been an amazing week for me,” said Wickmayer, who also won the women’s doubles crown alongside Romania’s Monica Niculescu. “Conditions were really hot out there. It was tough.”
Fognini beats Martin for title
Italian Fabio Fognini claimed his fourth ATP Tour title by seeing off Slovakia’s Andrej Martin 6-4, 6-1 in the final in Umag, Croatia.
Fourth seed Fognini, 29, took the opening set with a break in game ten, before easing through the second by a double break to take the victory in just 70 minutes.
Siegemund lands maiden title
Germany’s Laura Siegemund clinched her first WTA title in Bastad after defeating Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic 7-5, 6-1 in Sunday’s final.
Siegemund, who reached the final on clay in Stuttgart in April as a qualifier, navigated her way through a tight first set before powering to victory in 83 minutes.
The 28-year-old is projected to climb to a career-high of 32 in the world rankings after overcoming first-time finalist Siniakova.
