David Ferrer beats Nicolas Almagro, defends Abierto Mexicano Telcel Tennis Championships title
Top seed David Ferrer of Spain beat his compatriot Nicolas Almagro in a three-set thriller which he won 7-6, 6-7, 6-2 at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel Tennis Championships in Mexico on Saturday.
Win the win, defending champion Ferrer has extended his singles career title count to 11.
It was a back-and-forth affair, with momentum shifting after each set. The first two sets went into tiebreakers but the third set resulted in a comprehensive victory for Ferrer.
“I didn’t think I could win here twice in a row and I realise I am having the best season start of my career this year,” said Ferrer in his post match press conference. “I hope I can continue like that this season.”
The opener ignited with a series of serve breaks. Both men strained hard to break each other’s serve and were successful early in the set. A total of four serve breaks were seen in the first set, two for each player. Almagro converted two of the four break chances and levelled the score at 6-6. A tiebreaker came into play which Ferrer won to take the opening set 7-6.
The following set was no different than the first one, except Almagro squandering more break opportunities than he did in the first set. The Spaniard bagged merely one break point out of his four chances. Ferrer availed his only break opportunity to bring the set on even terms again. Almagro did very well on his serve points, winning 25 out of 38.
The second set needed another tiebreaker to decide the winner. Almagro was more proficient this time and gave no opportunities to his competitor. He secured two mini-breaks to seal the set 7-6.
The contest was evenly poised with both men winning one set apiece. An abrupt momentum swing took place in the third set as Almagro dropped his game drastically. His first serve percentage fell to an alarming 45. The Spaniard frittered away four serve break chances and converted just one.
Ferrer got an early break to lead the decider. Almagro lost steam after winning the second set and looked totally out of shape in the third. He kept making unforced errors on a regular basis and his opponent capitalised on them to get the edge.
Ferrer won 12 of his 17 first serve points and saved 80 per cent of break points. The defending champion broke Almagro’s serve thrice before he sealed the decisive set assertively at 6-2.
This victory of Ferrer earned him his 11th career title and extends his overall head-to-head record against Almagro to 6-0.
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