ADELAIDE – South Korean lucky loser Kwon Soon-woo won the biggest title of his career when he outlasted Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7-4) in a thrilling Adelaide International 2 final on Saturday.
The 25-year-old had lost in the second round of qualifying for the tournament, but was given a place in the main draw as a lucky loser.
He went on to beat Czech player Tomas Machac, second seed Pablo Carreno Busta, Sweden’s Mikael Ymer and rising English star Jack Draper to reach the decider.
“Since being beaten in (qualifying), I told myself I’ve got nothing to lose, and then I came all the way to the final,” said Kwon after his victory. “And why not? I put every energy into it, and that worked.”
In winning the event, the world No. 84 became the first South Korean to clinch multiple ATP Tour titles.
He is also the first lucky loser to win an ATP event since Marco Cecchinato in 2018 at Budapest, adding another title after emerging triumphant in Nur-Sultan in 2021.
The victory also ensures he will climb 32 places in the world rankings to a career-high 52 as he heads into the Australian Open, where he will face 123rd-ranked American Christopher Eubanks on Monday.
In a dramatic final that lasted 2hr 43min, Kwon broke the Spaniard’s first service game. He then used his powerful shot-making, his forehand in particular, to close out the first set.
Bautista Agut struck back immediately, breaking Kwon at the start of the second set and lifting his own service percentages to level the match at one set apiece.
When the Spaniard, 35, skipped to a 3-0 lead in the third it seemed all over, but Kwon dug deep and broke back, taking the set to a tiebreak.
The two traded blows in the tiebreak until at 4-3 to Bautista Agut, when the Spaniard faltered and Kwon claimed the next four points to close out the match.
In the women’s final, Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic laid down a marker for the next fortnight’s Australian Open with a dominant 6-0, 6-2 win over Daria Kasatkina.
The 25-year-old, who will move back to the top 10 after this tournament, did not face a single break point in the 67-minute contest.
An ecstatic Bencic said: “It’s my best result before the Australian Open and I’ve had the most matches going into it.
“It helps me to be confident and to know and believe in myself. This is great, and I won this tournament, but in Melbourne it starts again.”
She will certainly be one of the players to watch at the year’s first Grand Slam, where the 12th seed will face Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova in the first round on Tuesday.
The Tokyo Olympics singles champion, who has been ranked as high as world No. 4, led Switzerland to their first Billie Jean King Cup triumph in 2022.
Following the shock retirement of 2022 Australian Open champion Ashleigh Barty last March, the 2023 women’s field is wide open.
Bencic played Poland’s Iga Swiatek in the United Cup to open the season and pushed the world No. 1 in a high-quality match.
She continued her early-season form when she defeated world No. 4 Caroline Garcia in the Adelaide quarter-finals and former No. 1 Garbine Muguruza in the first round.
Meanwhile, American qualifier Lauren Davis won her second WTA title on Saturday to end a six-year drought when she swept past Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto 7-6 (7-0), 6-2 in the Hobart International final.
Davis, who won her maiden title in Auckland in 2017, came through two qualifiers before storming into the final and won the trophy without dropping a set.
In New Zealand, veteran Richard Gasquet fought back to stun Cameron Norrie in the Auckland Classic final for his first ATP title in nearly five years.
The 67th-ranked Frenchman prevailed 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 over the British world No. 12, and was delighted to have played his best tennis all week. “It’s an amazing title for me, especially now at my age,” said the 36-year-old. “I really didn’t think I would win again.”
He will meet compatriot Ugo Humbert in his opening match at the Australian Open. REUTERS, AFP
