Guido Pella steals the show in Sao Paulo – Tennis Special
Seventh seed, Guido Pella from Argentina, ruled throughout the week and eventually captured crown at the ATP Challenger Tour Finals 2012 on Saturday. He bowed out to sixth seeded Adrian Ungur in second round robin match. However, the Argentinean rising star
conquered his remaining matches and consequently stole the spotlight at this season-ending tournament taking place in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Pella entered the tournament standing at number 124 in the South African Airways ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour Rankings. He unleashed flurry of winners throughout the tournament and eventually lifted his fourth year-to-date title on
the Challenger Tour.
The 22-year-old made a stunning entry at the Ginásio do Ibirapuera. He stunned top seeded Thomaz Bellucci in a three-set mouth-watering match in his opening round robin match.
The youngster made quick in-roads against the Romanian contender, Ungur. He lost in the third set tie-breaker but stayed focused in the tournament.
In the final round robin match, Pella upset fourth seeded Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo in straight sets and qualified to the semi-finals.
Pella carried his rhythm in the final four at this year-ending tournament. He shocked third seeded Victor Hanescu in straight sets and booked a spot in the final showdown.
The left-handed Argentinean kept his momentum rolling in the replay of green group round robin match. He rallied past the sixth seed Romanian in a three-set thriller and avenged his loss. Pella nudged up a 6-3, 6-7(4), 7-6(4) score line in two hours and
31 minutes.
With this victory, Pella cracked back into the top 100 and improved to a 4-0 lifetime in the ATP Challenger Tour Finals this season.
The Argentine beamed in a courtside interview after capturing the crown:
"The match was really special because if I lost I would be out of the Top 100 and I would have to wait until 2013 to see if I could get in. My goal this year was getting closer to this group. I was able to get through that and everything will be different
next year. I expect to stay in the Top 100 for a long time... He has one of the best backhands on the tour. I was very nervous. In a certain moment, I told myself that I just couldn't do it. But I fought hard, served better and won the tie-break. I'm really
happy.”
After earning this gory, the world number 97 shelved his fourth year-to-date title and bagged the prize money.
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