Garcia Lopez triumphs at PTT Thailand Open
When the 2010 PTT Thailand Open commenced, Spanish professional tennis player Guillermo Garcia Lopez was considered one of the least likely players to win the tournament in Bangkok. The World Number 53 player had not won any ATP tournaments throughout the
year 2010, despite participating in 19 events. Therefore, not many fans or critics held out much hope for his success at the PTT Thailand Open this year; however, he shattered all expectations with his 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 defeat of Finnish Jarkko Nieminen on Sunday,
winning his first tournament of the year. It was the first year that the final of the Thailand Open featured two unseeded players.
Jarkko Nieminen’s otherwise excellent run this tournament suffered a tremendous hit in three sets to Guillermo Garcia Lopez, with Nieminen breaking on service thrice during the match. Both players tied a set each, with Garcia Lopez holding the first one
and Nieminen getting even with strong forehands and serves at the next set. Garcia Lopez saw his opportunity when Nieminen’s game faltered in the third set, and took the opportunity to turn the set in his favour by taking it to 3-1. This put Finn Nieminen
at a great disadvantage, although he struggled to regain control; he later told reporters, “I came back but he lifted his game in the third set. I tried everything but it wasn’t good enough.”
The match was still up for grabs when Nieminen’s first service went awry in the tenth game of the match. Although he succeeded in saving three match points, Garcia Lopez managed to take him down at the fourth with a winning forehand, edging himself into
a victory at 6-4.
It was an emotional victory for Garcia Lopez, who dropped to his knees on the court of Bangkok’s Impact Arena after the championship point and kissed the hard court surface. It was the third final of his career, and this win signified Spain’s 18th
tennis title this season, with Garcia Lopez being the 8th player from the country to win a title this year. The Spaniard, in an interview with reporters, said, “Each match is different. I think I played relaxed, enjoying my game, and everything
has been perfect. It’s hard to explain how I feel right now and what it means, but I feel very happy inside.”
Garcia Lopez’s rankings will raise themselves over ten places (near World Number 40) once tennis rankings are updated on October 4, 2010. He shattered all expectations with this victory at the tournament.His first feat which shook the tennis world was his
defeat of World Number 1 Rafael “Rafa” Nadal, making him the seventh player to beat Rafa. Nadal, who was also the first seed and favourite to win at this tournament, lost to his compatriot with a final tally of 2-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-3, making Garcia Lopez the
first player outside the Top 50 to defeat a World Number 1 champion since 2007. He also amassed victories over Michael Berra, Florent Serra and fourth seed Ernests Gulbis. 27 year old Guillermo Garcia Lopez, elated, says, “It’s been an unbelievable week for
me. I feel unbelievable. I cannot express (it). Maybe my face doesn’t tell, but inside I’m really happy.”
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