Jo-Wilfred Tsonga claims his second ATP world tour 500 event of his career after a 4-6 6-4 6-1 win over David Goffin in Rotterdam.
In the sixth meeting of their career, both players created break points at the start of the match, setting a high tempo for the rest of the match. However it was Goffin who had that killer instinct and broke in the third game for a 2-1 lead. Despite nine break points being created in the first three games of the set the rest of the set only provided two break point chances for the rest of the first set. Neither opportunity was taken and the first set was Goffin’s as he took it 6-4.
The second set saw both men hold comfortably and find their rhythm at the start of the second set. The key for Tsonga in the second set was the increase in his first serve percentage, 76% in the second set compared to the 61% in the first set was the key to the Frenchman holding more comfortably in the second set. The tenth game would be a mammoth game as the Frenchman would have five set points in the game, and Goffin’s sloppy play allowed Tsonga to seal the second set 6-4.
The final set saw the Belgian eventually ran out of steam, with the Frenchman using his power and serve to break three times and seal a 4-6 6-4 6-1 win in 1 hour and 55 minutes. Tsonga was delighted to win his 13th career title, “I’m really happy, These titles come at the right moments. The last couple of months I put in a lot of effort to come back to this level. It’s a huge reward for me and it gives me new expectations for the rest of the year.”
Analysis
It was interesting to hear Tsonga say that he has to readjust his expectations, so what were his expectations? Yes he has had some injuries, but you would expect him to be reaching for the peak of tennis and be aiming to fight for every tournament. Nonetheless it was a very good tournament from the Frenchman who has won just his second ATP world tour 500 event of his career.
For Goffin it has been another good tournament after reaching the final he is now the newest inductee into the ATP World Tour top 10, the first Belgian to achieve the feat. However this is the second final he has lost at this level and will want to improve on this. This will come with experience and I am sure will continue his determination and effort in his quest to win a tournament like this.
