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You are in: Tennis |
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Sunday, 14 April, 2002, 16:44 GMT 17:44 UK
Nalbandian wins maiden title
Nalbandian kept his cool to claim victory
David Nalbandian clinched his first tour title with a hard-fought victory over Jarkko Nieminen in the final of the Estoril Open on Sunday.
The 20-year-old Argentine, who is ranked 44th in the world, won Europe's first claycourt event of the season 6-4 7-6. "It feels great to finally win my first title. Neither one of us gave anything away. I was lucky on some points and they went my way," he said. Nalbandian's form throughout the tournament was superb as he beat holder Juan Carlos Ferroro and former champion Carlos Moya on the way to the final. And Nieminen too had upset the odds, knocking out second-seed Marat Safin in the quarter-finals. Five breaks in ten games ensured a close, nervous first set as the momentum shifted from player to player.
It stayed with serve after that until the tie-breaker, when Nalbandian took victory in one hour, 45 minutes when Nienimen volleyed into the net. I had a really great week here," said Nieminen. "Everything worked perfectly for me except this last match. But I'll take the runner-up trophy home to a special place on the shelf." The women's event provided another first as fourth-seeded Magui Serna of Spain won the first title of her career, beating qualifier Anca Barna of Germany in straight sets. Serna, playing in her fourth tour final, produced an attacking and clinical performance to win 6-4, 6-2. She said: "I'm very happy to have finally won my first title. It feels good to be a winner. "In the first set I was a bit nervous, I was the favourite so I was a bit tense. But it got better in the second."
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