World number 68, Joao Sousa made history as he became the first man from Portugal to win on home soil at an ATP event after a 6-4 6-4 victory over Frances Tiafoe in Estoril.
Sousa broke twice in the first set as both men created many opportunities in the opening set. There was four ranking places between the finalists and it was easy to see why as there was not much separating the pair with Sousa being the more consistent. After saving three break points the man from Guimaraes converted his first set point as he neutralised Tiafoe’s power to seal the opening set in 41 minutes.
The second set was all Sousa as he stormed into a 4-0 love lead with Tiafoe making some untimely unforced errors. The American couldn’t fine tune his game in the big moments as he was heading towards defeat. There was some tense moments for the home crowd as the world number 64 gained one of the two breaks back. However it was Sousa’s day as he held to love to seal his third career title and some emotional moments ensued after the match:
This is why we play.
An unforgettable moment for @joaosousa30 as he defeats Tiafoe 6-4 6-4 to become the #EstorilOpen champion! pic.twitter.com/aMyJQyavFM
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 6, 2018
The win Sousa is the first man from Portugal to win in his home country at an ATP World Tour event. As for Tiafoe it was another good learning experience and a positive week ahead of the clay court season.
Daniel Wins Maiden Title As Zverev Retains In Munich
In the other ATP World Tour finals today, Taro Daniel won his first ever ATP World Tour title after defeating Malek Jaziri 7-6(4) 6-4 to win the Istanbul title. Daniel broke three times as he sealed victory in 2 hours and 22 minutes. After the match the Tokyo resident expressed his shock at the week he had in the Turkish capital, “Obviously really happy. I think today was a great match, a lot of long rallies from the beginning until the end, Very happy. I’m obviously pretty surprised that I suddenly won an ATP [World Tour title]. But I guess things like this happen.”
The third final of the day saw Alexander Zverev capture his first title of the season after a 6-3 6-3 victory over fellow German Philipp Kohlschreiber. The win means he has successfully defended his title and takes great confidence going into the Mutua Madrid Open.
