Tennis Roundup: Thompson wins maiden ATP title, Khachanov ends Mensik's dream run

Australia’s Jordan Thompson defeated Casper Ruud to seal the first ATP title of his career with a 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) victory in the Los Cabos Open final in Mexico on Saturday.

Thompson – who had knocked out top seed Alexander Zverev in a marathon semi-final battle that finished in the early hours of Saturday morning – once again dug deep to overcome fourth-seeded Ruud.

The 29-year-old Australian showed no sign of fatigue from Friday’s marathon three-hour, 40-minute battle with Zverev as he took control of Saturday’s final with the three-time Grand Slam finalist from Norway.

“It’s been an incredible week,” said Thompson, who had also saved three match points to recover from 6-0, 3-0 down in a quarter-final win over Alex Michelsen earlier in the tournament.

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“I spent some serious hours on the court this week, and I want to thank everyone for staying up late last night and throughout the week. The crowd was amazing.

“It’s been a journey. I’m nearly 30 and I’m lifting a trophy; I never thought I would do that.”

The moment @jordanthommmo2 won his first ATP Title!

@CaboTennisOpen | #LosCabosTennisOpen pic.twitter.com/acPYwFbIUk

— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 25, 2024

Thompson broke Ruud in the sixth game of the opening set for a 4-2 lead and then fought off two break points to hold and win the first set 6-3.

He looked to be poised for a brisk victory after breaking Ruud and then holding to go 5-3 up in the second set.

But Thompson appeared to tighten when serving for the match at 5-4 as Ruud took a 0-40 lead to break back and level it at 5-5.

The next two games went with serve to set up a tie-break as the tension mounted.

Yet Thompson regained his composure in the tie-break, taking a 3-2 lead after Ruud double-faulted, and then opening up a commanding 5-2 lead.

Ruud held to get it back to 5-4 but Thompson was not to be denied, taking two match points when Ruud lashed a return long.

Thompson then sent down a booming serve that left Ruud flailing and the Australian advanced to the net to bury a winner that clinched a deserved victory.

Khachanov ends Mensik’s dream Qatar run to clinch sixth title

The moment Khachanov secured his 6th ATP Tour Title 🏆

Chengdu ✅
Marseille ✅
Moscow ✅
PARIS ✅
Zhuhai ✅
Doha ✅#QatarExxonMobilOpen pic.twitter.com/tBGikoxHTO

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) February 24, 2024

Karen Khachanov ended Jakub Mensik’s bid to become the 10th youngest ATP champion with a straight sets win in the Qatar Open final on Saturday.

The 17th-ranked Russian won 7-6 (14/12), 6-4 to claim a sixth career title against 18-year-old Mensik, the youngest finalist at a tour event since Carlos Alcaraz at Umag in 2021.

“Every title is a special one,” Khachanov, who didn’t drop a set all week, said on court.

“Every time, you want to win. We play around 22 tournaments per season and at the end of the day, you compete every week. For sure here in Doha it is one of the nicest trophies.”

Czech teenager Mensik, ranked 116 who will break into the top 100 next week, was playing in just his third main draw event following breakout runs to the third round of the 2023 US Open and a second-round appearance at the Australian Open last month.

On his way to the Doha final, he knocked out former world number one Andy Murray as well as top seed Andrey Rublev.

He had his chances in a marathon opener on Saturday when his 27-year-old Russian opponent saved four set points.

“I thought yesterday’s tie-break was preparation for today,” added Khachanov who had claimed a 14/12 breaker against Alexei Popyrin on Friday in the semi-finals.

“Today I couldn’t believe it was the same score, same tie-break… I stayed strong, I’m extremely happy that I won the first set. It lifted me a lot and gave me a lot of confidence to step up in the second.”

Khachanov also faced down 16 aces from the young Czech.

“For a minute, I thought I was playing John Isner and not Jakub Mensik today,” said the Russian.

Navone downs champion Norrie to reach ATP Rio Open final

Welcome to the big time, Mariano Navone 🇦🇷

The 22-year-old qualifier takes out defending champion Norrie 6-4 6-2 to set up an all-Argentine final vs Baez in Rio!#RioOpen10Anos pic.twitter.com/yyl8e5TDrT

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) February 25, 2024

Defending champion Cameron Norrie crashed out of the ATP Rio Open clay court tournament on Saturday, slumping to a straight sets semi-final defeat against Argentinian qualifier Mariano Navone.

British No.1 Norrie – aiming to win back-to-back titles in Rio after defeating Carlos Alcaraz in last year’s final – struggled in hot and humid conditions before sliding to a 6-4, 6-2 defeat.

The 22-year-old Navone, currently ranked 113th in the world, was handed three match points when Norrie smacked a forehand long in the eighth game of the second set.

Another miscued return by the second-seeded British world number 23 sealed victory for the Argentine youngster, who advances to the first ATP final of his career, where he will face compatriot Sebastien Baez.

“It’s incredible, my first final,” Navone said after the win. “I played so good all week. Today was very hot and humid, it’s tough to play in these conditions.

“But I’ve played six matches in a row so I feel pretty good.”

Navone’s victory set up an all-Argentina clash in Sunday’s final on the Quadra Guga Kuerten showcourt after Sebastian Baez defeated compatriot Francisco Cerundolo in Saturday’s other semi-final.

Baez saved three set points in the first set of his clash with Cerundolo before going on to win 7-5, 6-0.

“We know each other too much, I think, more than I want,” Baez said after his semi-final win. “All matches are different. Today it’s going to my side.

“In the first set, I gave many break points to him. I had to take it because it’s so hard for both.”