Tommy Roberedo wins 10th ATP World Tour title
Tommy Robredo of Spain won his 10th ATP World Tour title after he beat Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo in an exhilarating final of the Movistar Open. The Spaniard won the match by 6-2, 2-6 and 7-6 in Santiago.
Robredo started the match off aggressively and he won six straight games in the opening set. He didn’t give much of an opportunity to the 23 year-old Colombian to recover and took the set by 6-2.
It seemed like the match would be a one sided affair until Giraldo bounced back with a strong performance in the second set. Robredo had a break point in the second game of the set but the Colombian saved the break point and forged ahead. Giraldo then continued
to give Roberado a tough time, breaking his serve twice. Giraldo easily overcame Robredo in the second set by 6-2.
The Colombian broke early in the final set and things were looking grim for Robredo. However, Giraldo failed to hold his serve at 5-4. The match went into a tie-breaker and the Spaniard used all of his experience to emerge victorious. The win gave Robredo
his first title since 2009 when he won at Buenos Aires. This was also Robredo’s ninth title victory on clay court.
After the match, Robredo stated, “When he served at 5-3 in the third, he started being less aggressive and put the ball more in play which allowed me to play longer and get into the court again.”
The Spaniard improved his record in 2011 to 9-2 with a title win in Santiago. He reached the fourth round of the Australian Open, where he was defeated by Roger Federer.
Robredo claimed, “I feel I started the year well. I am feeling great. It gives me a lot of hope to continue this way. I think I can have the best or one of the best years in my career in 2011.”
On the other hand, Giraldo was disappointed and heartbroken with the outcome of the match. He came too close to winning his first ever ATP title and become the first Colombian player to win the title since 1995. The last Colombian to win a title in 1995
was Mauricio Hadad, who won in Bermuda.
Giraldo blamed his lack of experience for his inability to win the match from a very strong position. However, he was happy with his performances in 2011 and he said that he will be looking forward to a strong season ahead.
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