Dominic Thiem improved to 9-0 lifetime at the Argentina Open and captured his second title there in as many appearances thanks to a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Aljaz Bedene on Sunday afternoon. Thiem lifted the ninth winner’s trophy his career–and seventh on clay–after one hour and 31 minutes of play.
“With these conditions–slow and hot–there are many chances for me to play well,” the sixth-ranked Austrian explained. “[Winning the title] was my goal before starting the week and it is incredible to have achieved it…. I love playing on clay. Last year I played indoors in Europe (this time of year) and they are nice tournaments, too, but here I have a better time. I wanted to win the title and any other result would not have been good. It had almost been a year since my last title, so it was time for me to do it again.”
“It was a great week for me,” Bedene reflected. “Domi played at a great level and is the deserved champion. I hope to win my first title at some point.”
Thiem-Bedene highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hnWjrGvVqA
A much more competitive New York Open final saw Kevin Anderson battle past familiar foe Sam Querrey 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(1) after two hours and 13 minutes. Anderson out-aced Querrey 16 to nine as he secured the fourth title of his career and first since the summer of 2015.
The 6’8” South African saved one set point in the final set while Querrey fought off two en route to the decisive tiebreaker. That’s when Anderson raced to a commanding 6-0 advantage before capitalizing on his second championship point at 6-1 with a perfect forehand passing shot.
“One of the big goals I had for this year was to try to be a bit more successful in that final stage,” said the new world No. 9. “It feels great to come through and get today’s win. It gives me a lot of confidence for the year.”
“A couple points here and there (decided it),” Querrey commented. “The way he plays it doesn’t let you play that much because he goes so much, so you don’t really get that comfortable out there. But it could have gone either way.”
Anderson-Querrey highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8M5TEVrrwY
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congrats to both
Thiem is proving to be a clay courter essentially. This title should help him get ready for the upcoming clay court swing. Kevin Anderson does well in the US it seems .. http://www.138mph.com/atp-tennis-anderson-defeats-querrey-at-the-new-york-open-and-thiem-demolishes-bedene-in-buenos-aires/