Top-seeded Dominic Thiem gave the home crowd what it wanted on Saturday, dispatching Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas 7-6 (0), 6-1 to win the Generali Open in Kitzbuhel, Austria, his third title of 2019.
Neither player was threatened much on his serve in the rain-interrupted first set, though Thiem had to fight off five break points to hold at 2-2. He turned it on in the tiebreaker, taking all three points on Ramos-Vinolas’ serve.
Thiem, 25, was in control throughout the second set, breaking his opponent twice and losing just five points total on his own serve.
“It is already one of my most beautiful moments ever in my tennis career,” Thiem said, per ATP.com. “It was one of the most emotional moments because I have a special connection with Kitzbühel. I was here for the first time when I was 6 on this huge center court. I was watching the tournament many times.
“I got my first wild card here and now to finish the tournament as the champion is incredible. I reached one big childhood goal today.”
The title was the 14th of Thiem’s career.
Citi Open
Australia’s Nick Kyrgios survived one match point and won four of the final five points in the third-set tiebreaker to outlast top-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7) and reach the final in Washington, D.C.
Tsitsipas had recovered from 5-1 down in the decisive tiebreaker with five straight points, but Kyrgios held to even it at 6-6 and then won the next point on his serve. Tsitsipas fought off the ensuing match point but lost the next on his serve, setting up Kyrgios to serve for the match.
The Australian had converted his only break point in the first set and opened the second set with another break, but Tsitsipas broke twice in a row to salvage the second set.
Kyrgios, 24, will seek his sixth career title — all won on hardcourt — against Russian Daniil Medvedev, who cruised by German lucky loser Peter Gojowczyk 6-2, 6-2 in just 55 minutes in the other semifinal. Kyrgios won the first-ever meeting between the two earlier this year in Rome.
Abierto de Tenis Mifel
Third-seeded Diego Schwartzman of Argentina battled past fifth-seeded American Taylor Fritz 7-6 (6), 6-3 to claim his third career title in Los Cabos, Mexico.
Schwartzman narrowly escaped the first set. He recovered from a break down at 4-1 to level it at 4-4, but Fritz created triple set point while up 6-5 with Schwartzman serving. However, the Argentine won five straight points to force a tiebreaker. After Fritz took a 2-0 lead in the tiebreaker, Schwartzman won five of the next six and squandered three set points before finally breaking through.
In the second set, Schwartzman broke in the fourth game, then answered Fritz’s break with another of his own to lead 5-4 before serving out.
It was the second straight runner-up finish for Fritz, who also reached the final in Atlanta last week.
–Field Level Media
