Tennis: Basilashvili wins in Germany to become first Georgian to take ATP title - Los Angeles Times
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Tennis: Basilashvili wins in Germany to become first Georgian to take ATP title

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Nikoloz Basilashvili became the first Georgian to win an ATP World Tour title with a 6-4, 0-6, 7-5 win over defending champion Leonardo Mayer of Argentina on Sunday at the German Championships in Hamburg.

The 26-year-old qualifier recovered from a disastrous second set to win in his first final.

Mayer had reached the German Championships final for the third time in five years after saving a match point on Saturday against Slovak qualifier Jozek Kovalik.

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Basilashvili secured a decisive break in the third game en route to taking the opening set before his 31-year-old opponent responded by winning the second in just 30 minutes.

After the pair shared the opening 10 games of the decider, the 81st-ranked Basilashvili broke again before successfully serving for the championship.

“I literally gave in every match my heart,†Basilashvili told atpworldtour.com. “I’m pretty sure every player worked so hard for this, but it’s an unbelievable moment for me.â€

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Mayer’s only two ATP titles came on the same Hamburg clay in 2014 and 2017.

Berrettini wins Swiss Open in first ATP final

Matteo Berrettini of Italy beat Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut 7-6 (9), 6-4 to win the Swiss Open in Gstaad, Switzerland on Sunday.

Berrettini was playing in his first ATP final, wrapping up his fifth straight-sets win of the week in one hour and 45 minutes. He fought off two set points in a close-run first set and secured the only break of the match in the second to secure the win.

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At 22, he’s the youngest Italian finalist on the ATP Tour in 15 years. Bautista Agut is making his way back from a hip injury he picked up during the Halle semifinals, which forced him to miss Wimbledon, and was chasing the ninth ATP title of his career and third this year.

Danilovic wins in Moscow

Olga Danilovic of Serbia won her first WTA title when she beat Russian wild card Anastasia Potapova 7-5, 6-7 (1), 6-4 in the Moscow River Cup on Sunday.

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