Juan Monaco topples Julien Benneteau to click the title of Proton Malaysian Open – Tennis Special
Argentinean number two, Juan Monaco, got the better of the seventh seed, Julien Benneteau from France, at the Proton Malaysian Open 2012 on Sunday. He notched up a 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 victory against the French veteran to grab the crystalware at this ATP (Association
of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 250 Series event taking place in Bukit Jalil in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Seeded second in this event, Monaco crushed dreams of the French challenger and captured his fourth year-to-date title at this indoor hard court event. After stealing this show in almost three hours, the Argentine not only took lead in the FedEx ATP Head
2 Head Series by 1-0 against Benneteau but also pocketed $153,440 in prize money.
The jubilant Argentine was quoted in a post match press conference:
"I celebrated with my team in the locker room and tonight I'll have Malaysian food with my team. It has been nice to be in this city and win the trophy. It feels very good. When I win a title, I think of my family and my team, as they believe in me, they
have supported me and we have worked hard to win tournaments.... I think we played a great match, with a lot of ups and downs."
Monaco made a drastic start at the Putra Indoor Stadium. He suffered the first blow in the opening game and jumped to a 2-0 lead. Despite levelling the scores in the fourth game, the Argentine broke his rival’s serve again in the eighth game and took a 5-3
lead. He squandered his serve in the very next game but got the breakthrough in the last game, eventually sealing the opener by winning seven games to five.
The 30-year-old, who was bidding for his maiden career title, made a spectacular reply in the proceeding set. He got the coveted break in the opening game and took the initial lead. Regardless of losing his edge in the very following game, the French remained
calm and plucked his remaining serves with conviction. He capitalised another break opportunity in the fifth game and clicked the equaliser with a 6-4 success.
The Tandil native, Monaco re-gained his strength in the finals set. He smoothly held his entire serves after blocking the lone breakpoint he faced. The Argentine cashed one out of two break opportunities in the sixth game and pocketed the decider with a
6-3 win.
With this victory, Monaco cracked into the Top 10 of the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings once again and gained confidence boost. He is looking forward to take some rest and then gear up for the upcoming tournament in Tokyo.
“I'd like to relax now and enjoy the victory. It isn't easy to win tournaments, but I will focus on the next challenge and go to Tokyo tomorrow.”
Monaco is seeded fourth at the Rakuten Open and is bidding for his eighth career title. With his current run of form, the Argentine can reach far at this ATP World Tour 500 Series event.
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