Henri Laaksonen inflicted the second final defeat in three weeks for Ruben Bemelmans at the Challenger level, as the Swiss won 7-5, 6-3 in Champaign, earning his second consecutive title at the tournament.
Bemelmans had lost in the final of Charlottesville to Reilly Opelka two weeks ago in a close three set battle. This final was not however, nearly as close as the Belgian struggled to contain Laaksonen.
The match was effectively decided when Laaksonen broke in the second set. The Swiss had posted strong numbers on first serve, winning more than 70% in both sets, and, after three breaks in the first (two for Laaksonen, one for Bemelmans), the solitary break in the second decided things.
It had been a weird week for the Swiss, as he struggled against a number of young Americans. Raymond Sarmiento (Ranking .360), Jared Hiltzik (.664), and Christopher Eubanks (937) all took sets off the second seed, with Hiltzik at one stage just two points from knocking out the defending champion. Laaksonen though, proved his mettle when it counted most, winning through to the final before enjoying a straight sets win for only the second time this week.
Player of the tournament: Christopher Eubanks: The young American was given a wildcard into this event and the Atlanta ATP event earlier this season. It’s not difficult to see why. The big server (he stands at 6’7 at twenty years of age) scored impressive an straight sets wins against seventh seed Noah Rubin, before defeating Sekou Bangoura. A fortunate progression into the semi-finals due to Michael Mmoh’s withdrawal set up a meeting with Laaksonen. He performed well, forcing two tie-breaks in the three-set match. Eubanks appears to manage to keep things tight, much like John Isner, drawing strong records in tie-breaks and using his serve to good effect. One to watch.
Special Mention: Bradley Klahn. Wonderful to see the former Stanford player back after nearly two years out with injury. A run to the quarter-finals after qualifying is an excellent achievement.
