Stan Wawrinka’s winning streak in finals finally came to an end on Sunday. In turn, the third time was the charm for Alexander Zverev.
Playing in an ATP final for the third time in his career, Zverev triumphed for the first time by beating the top-seeded Wawrinka 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 at the St. Petersburg Open. The world No. 27 battled back from a 3-0 deficit in the final set to get the job done after two hours and 23 minutes.
Following a rough opening set, Wawrinka seemed to seize control by breaking twice in the second while surrendering only four points in four service games. The U.S. Open champion also broke for a quick 2-0 lead in the decider, but that’s where his momentum came to a sudden end. Zverev broke back for 2-3 and earned another crucial break at 5-5. An easy hold in the next game sealed the deal for the 19-year-old German, who clinched victory with a forehand pass at 40-15.
“This victory is something special,” Zverev noted. “I played all the finals well. I lost to Dominic Thiem on clay and I could have won against Florian Mayer on the grass…. Now I’m very happy with the win, especially over such a great player like Stan.”
“We showed high-quality tennis,” Wawrinka assessed. “I was struggling in the third set; I had chances but I didn’t manage to convert them. He deserved the win.”
Winning is exactly what Lucas Pouille has been doing throughout the 2016 campaign–especially since late spring. Fresh off a run to the U.S. Open quarters, which featured a five-set upset of Rafael Nadal, Pouille secured his first career ATP title by defeating Dominic Thiem 7-6(5), 6-2 at the Moselle Open on Sunday afternoon.
The more experienced Thiem was competing in his 10th final and seeking his eighth title, and for a while he enjoyed the upper hand. Ranked No. 10 in the world, the 23-year-old Austrian seized a 5-2 lead in the opening-set tiebreaker only to drop five points in succession. It was all Pouille the rest of the way. The 18th-ranked Frenchman carried his fine form into the second, during which he broke for 1-0 and 5-2 before serving out the match at love.
“I’m very happy with my week,” Pouille assured. “Winning a title is a big step, it’s an objective I wanted to achieve this year. It was a well-played final. We both played at a high level.”
“I think the first set was a pretty high level from both of us,” Thiem added. “I should have won the tiebreak but had an easy volley mistake. All in all, he was the better player and had more chances in my service games. He deserved to win today. I think he put pressure on me all the time and was serving really well.
“He’s had an amazing year, reaching the quarterfinals in the last two Grand Slams and semis in the Masters 1000 in Rome. I think we will see him in the Top 10 soon.”
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