(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Japanese qualifier Yoshihito Nishioka broke through for his maiden ATP singles title yesterday, outlasting seasoned Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 in a gruelling final of the Shenzhen Open. 'This is the dream for tennis players, said Nishioka afterwards. 'I believe this is the beginning.
The 23-year-old Nishioka, ranked 171 in the world, in the end played seven matches in eight days at the Shenzhen Longgang Sports Centre but his legs were full of running in a marathon final as he threw himself at everything Herbert could give.
As the match clock ticked towards two-and-a-half hours, Nishioka sealed the victory on his fifth match point — and looked as though he could hardly believe what had just happened. Twelve months ago, the Japanese player was stuck at home pondering his future after tearing an ACL.
He will now return to the world's top 100 after that injury had seen his ranking plummet to as low as 362. 'It was a very long run to get here, seven matches, said Nishioka. 'It's not easy. I'm very tired right now. I think my strength is my mentality and stamina and I never give up. That's my weapon.
Both players came into the final unfancied and unseeded and both had yet to claim a ATP Tour singles title. Herbert had only made one final previously (losing in straight sets to South African Kevin Anderson at the Winston-Salem Open in the US in 2015) while Nishioka had never before graced the big stage.
Australian firebrand Tomic wins first title in three years
Controversial Australian Bernard Tomic won his first tournament in three years yesterday — and in the most dramatic of circumstances, saving four match points to triumph at the Chengdu Open.
The 25-year-old defeated top seed Fabio Fognini of Italy 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (9/7) in a thrilling three-setter in southwest China, where he was a qualifier. Tomic sank to his knees in celebration, kissed the court and then looked up to the sky as he milked the moment. Tomic's first ATP World Tour crown since Bogota in 2015 will propel the world-ranked 123 comfortably inside the top 100 and eyeing a spot at next year's Australian Open. Once seen as a rising star, Tomic has had a number of run-ins with authorities over the years, earning him the reputation as one of tennis's bad boys.
Back injury forces No. 1 Halep to retire from China Open
World number one Simona Halep said that she was 'worried now after a persistent back problem forced her out of the China Open after just 31 miserable minutes yesterday. The Romanian never looked comfortable against Tunisian qualifier Ons Jabeur, losing the opening set of their first-round match 6-1 before calling it quits.
The 27-year-old Halep suffered a back injury a week ago in Wuhan and she cut a forlorn figure after it ended her Beijing adventure prematurely. The top-ranked Halep's departure is another blow to organisers in the Chinese capital, with Serena Williams missing from the women's draw and several big names also absent from the men's event.
'There is a pain, I couldn't move properly so that's why I stopped, Halep, who suffered a shock early exit from the recent US Open, said. 'I don't know exactly what it is. I will go home, I will have an MRI (scan) and I will see. I'm just worried now, I feel sad that I couldn't finish, Halep added, saying that she feared playing was making the problem worse and she knew from the start of the match that she was struggling.
Halep believes it is a different back problem from the one that contributed to her early loss in Wuhan. 'I knew that there is pain, but I thought if I warm up during the match, it's going to be better, but it wasn't, she said.
Holder Caroline Garcia survived a major scare before defeating wildcard Wang Yafan 7-6 (12/10), 6-7 (4/7), 6-3 to open the defence of her crown. The 24-year-old from France defied a rattling roof and a surprisingly stiff challenge from the home player to labour into round two on Beijing's hard courts after more than three hours of nervy action. Garcia took the first set on a tie-break after 77 minutes during which the retractable roof — which was closed — banged noisily on occasion in the wind.
The fourth-ranked French and Wang, 78th in the world, went to battle again in the second set and Garcia came back to force another tie-break. Garcia, who won back-to-back titles last year in China, rescued one set point in the tie-break but Wang made the second count to force a deciding set. Garcia was more ruthless this time, racing into a 3-0 lead as the 24-year-old Wang's fighting spirit was finally nullified.
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