The Hindu : Sport : Richard Gasquet triumphs in Gstaad

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Monday, Jul 17, 2006

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Richard Gasquet triumphs in Gstaad

GSTAAD: France's Richard Gasquet claimed his second title in three weeks today with a 7-6(4), 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-3 win over Spain's Feliciano Lopez in the final of the Swiss Open on Sunday.

It was Gasquet's third career title, following his triumph at the Nottingham Open in the run-up to Wimbledon where he was beaten by world number one Roger Federer in the first round.

Gasquet had to contend with some impressive serving from the hard-hitting Lopez but was frequently able to outplay and outrun his opponent with a clever variety of shots.

In the second set the Frenchman dropped just two points on his own serve while taking Lopez to deuce four times.

He failed to convert two break point chances, however, and paid the price when Lopez rallied to take the tiebreak.

There were no such mistakes in the following sets, as Gasquet's patient play was finally rewarded with three breaks of the Spaniard's serve.

``He is really the best server that I've played against,'' Gasquet said. ``I had to wait for it.''

Lopsided final

Tommy Robredo routed top-seeded Nikolay Davydenko 6-2, 6-1 on Sunday to win the clay-court Swedish Open in Bastad for his second ATP Tour title of the season.

The 24-year-old Spaniard, who won the Hamburg Masters for his biggest career win in May, broke Davydenko's serve at the start of each set and was never really challenged by the Russian.

It was the 59th Swedish Open final — and one of the most lopsided finals in tournament history. Davydenko, who had lost just one set en route to the final, looked sluggish and often mistimed his shots. He finished with 28 unforced errors.

For ninth-ranked Robredo, it was the fourth career ATP singles title. He also won at Sopot and his hometown of Barcelona. All came on clay, his favourite surface.

`Scud' in final

Mark Philippoussis used his big serve to advance to the final of the Hall of Fame Championships, beating sixth-seeded Jurgen Melzer 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-0 in the semifinals of the Hall of Fame championship in Newport on Saturday.

Philippoussis, ranked No. 9 in the world in 2003 before falling out of the top 100 in the past two years because of injuries, will face eighth-seeded Justin Gimelstob, a 6-1, 7-6(4) winner over top-seeded Andy Murray. A top seed has never won the grass tournament in its 30-year history as a tour event.

``I knew what I had to do,'' Philippoussis said. ``I was confident in my serve the whole day. On returns, I wanted to go for it and be aggressive.''

Philippoussis, a 2003 Wimbledon finalist, won 87 per cent of his first-serve points against the Austrian.

After being broken for the first point of the tiebreaker and falling behind 6-1 before losing the set, Philippoussis responded by breaking Melzer in the third and fifth games of the second set. Philippoussis broke serve again in the first game of the third set to take control and later converted three aces in the fourth game. The Australian closed out the match with his 16th ace to reach his first final since 2003.

Gimelstob, the American making his 10th appearance in Newport, will be looking for his first ATP title.

``I served very well. The best that I have this week, and that enabled me to take more chances,'' Gimelstob said. ``The courts are advantageous to my style.''

Gimelstob also noticed how well Philippoussis has played.

``It's nice that he's back, but I just want to concentrate on my side of the net,'' he said.

Murray advanced to the fourth round at Wimbledon before coming to Newport, where the Briton felt he was affected by the surface that endured two days of rain.

The results: At Gstaad (Swiss Open): Final: Richard Gasquet bt Feliciano Lopez 7-6(4), 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-3.

At Bastad (Swedish Open): Final: Tommy Robredo bt Nikolay Davydenko 6-2, 6-1.

At Newport (Hall of Fame Championship): Semifinals: Mark Philippoussis bt Jurgen Melzer 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-0; Justin Gimelstob bt Andy Murray 6-1, 7-6(4). — Agencies

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