Alejandro Davidovich Fokina is once again just one win away from his first-ever ATP title.
What could possibly go wrong?!?!
At No. 25 in the world, Davidovich Fokina is the highest-ranked player who has never won a tournament and he is without question the best player who has never accomplished that feat. To say that he has come close, though, would be an understatement. The 27-year-old has finished runner-up five times, including four last season — two of which saw a combined five championship points missed. In Delray Beach, Miomir Kecmanovic won the last five games from 5-2 down in the third set while saving two match points. In Washington, D.C., Alex De Minaur fought off three match points before triumphing in a third-set tiebreaker.
Standing in Davidovich Fokina’s way of the Mallorca Championships trophy on Saturday afternoon is Ethan Quinn in what will be their first-ever meeting.
Quinn is playing in his first ATP final, but this development is hardly a surprise. The 63rd-ranked Spaniard has been playing great tennis dating back to last season, a stretch that features a triumph at the prestigious Phoenix Challenger earlier this year. Quinn has advanced in Mallorca with victories over Valentin Royer, Murphy Cassone, Vit Kopriva, and Nuno Borges.
Davidovich Fokina’s latest final appearance comes as a bit of a surprise. The Spaniard went into this week with a modest 15-13 record for the season, including a 6-8 mark in his past 14 matches. It is turning around for Davidovich Fokina in Mallorca, where he has ousted Adam Walton, Grigor Dimitrov, and Fabian Marozan.
The semifinal against Marozsan lasted exactly two hours, whereas Quinn destroyed Nuno Borges 6-1, 6-2 in 56 minutes. That is a big advantage for the underdog in terms of confidence and rest. The bottom line, however, is that Davidovich Fokina — until he finally gets over the hump — simply can’t be trusted in this situation.
Pick: Quinn in 3
WWW?
Can Quinn keep that level that he showed yesterday?