Hungarian Marton Fucsovics changed an near-catastrophic collapse into a triumphant third ATP Tour-title run after a roller coaster conflict with the Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp in Saturday final of the Winston-Salem.
After having concluded 6-3, 5-1 and a championship point at 5-2 with a double error, the 33-year-old noticed about a complicated defeat when he had to stay in the second set at 5-6.
But he found his nerve at the right time to come up a link in the Tie-Break, while his opponent squirted a series of casual mistakes to claim his first hard title 6-3, 7-6 (3).
“I am speechless, real. I had a long career, a few trophies,” said Fucsovics. “This is actually my third. I am 33 and a half years old. So I belong to the older generation, but I am still here and won an ATP 250.
“So I will continue to fight. I now enjoy tennis. I will play as long as I can. I love this sport, so it’s very emotional for me.”
Known for his slogan of ‘Every Day, Gym Day’, was the muscle-bound 33-year-old the second oldest champion in tournament history (Adrian Mannarino, 34, in 2022) and claimed his second title in as many seasons (Bucharest, 2024). His first title came in 2018 in Geneva.
Fucsovics dropped only one set on the way to the title, against another Dutchman, second Seed Tallon Greekspoor, in the second round. He also got 14th seed from Roberto Bautista Agut and 12th Seed Jaume Munar on his way to the title.
A proponent of the event made his eighth performance in North Carolina, Fucsovics raced to the title that led 6-3, 3-0 before Van de Zandschulp claimed a break against the grain. More fear would follow because he had not served the match on 5-2 and 5-4.
Thinking about making the victory much more difficult than could have been otherwise, Fucsovics said: “This is tennis. We must be able to learn how to deal with these situations. Sometimes you are on, sometimes you are finished.
“… When he came back, I got up with a higher level. I raised the footwork, the game, the aggression, so that was the key at the end.”
From the week at no. 94 in the PIF ATP ranking, Fucsovics is expected to be at number 63 countries when the new rankings are released. His career-high figure of 31 came in 2019.
Van de Zandschulp was at number 92 that entered the tournament and is expected to rise 20 places to no. 72.
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