“It’s destiny!” Ruud triumph wraps up record-breaking Bastide Médical UTS Nîmes
Casper Ruud won his first UTS title by beating Tomas Machac in the final
Casper Ruud (Tennis Majors)
Casper “The Ice Man” Ruud was thrilled to have won his first-ever UTS title in front of a UTS record crowd of 12,500 at the Bastide Médical UTS Nîmes in the historic Arena de Nimes.
And he said that it was no coincidence that it was his first opportunity to play a UTS event on his favoured clay surface.
“It was two tough matches today,” he reflected. “One in the semi-final [against Andrey Rublev], I saved a few match points, so happy to to get to the final, and then in the final was a very close match again. I was happy to get it.
“First UTS victory tournament victory for me, so super happy. I had to wait until the clay came, and, it was, I guess, destiny for me to to win on on the clay finally.”
He added: “Clay makes this format very playable. You play more points, rallies, and it’s a great, great feeling.”
In the final, Ruud ended the incredible seven-match unbeaten streak of Tomas “Air Machete” Machac, who made his UTS debut in Guadalajara earlier in the year, where he won the title.
Machac – whose winning streak was the best-ever start to a UTS career – was not too disappointed, though, describing the event as “unbelievable, really – I think one of the best tournament ever, so I really enjoyed that.”
Ruud: Most UTS match wins ever
With a 12-13, 16-14, 15-14, 15-11 victory, Ruud now has 14 UTS match wins to his name – the most ever, tied with Andrey “Rublo” Rublev.
He lifted the iconic Zeus trophy in front of the cheering fans, who were vocal throughout the day, enjoying top-class tennis as well as gorgeous weather; indeed, beaten semi-finalist Rublev had said earlier: “It’s an amazing feeling that today was completely full, and it’s something special.”
And the fans were also treated to an exciting announcement as Patrick Mouratoglou, founder of UTS, and Michael Cheng, president of the HKC Tennis Association, revealed that the UTS Tour will make a stop in Hong Kong in October.
The semi-finals
Both semi-finals had gone to sudden death after enthrallingly close encounters.
Machac dropped one match point against Alex “The Demon” de Minaur, but ultimately came through 12-13, 12-11, 6-20, 17-13, 2-1 – completing his seventh win in a row in UTS, the best-ever debut to life on the tour.
“I think I had many, many chances. I just didn’t play the important points well today, and that was the difference,” said De Minaur.
And despite Rublev’s resurgence from a two-quarter deficit, Ruud triumphed 14-11, 17-8, 13-15, 12-18, 3-2.
“We played a good match. I was able to come back. I had my chances. I didn’t make them, and in the end, he had his chance,” Rublev said afterwards.
Classification matches
The four players who had been eliminated in Friday’s quarter-finals also took to the court in classification matches.
At the start of play, Alexei “The Sniper” Popyrin beat Ben “The Mountain” Shelton 15-9, 16-14, 14-13.
The Sniper was quick to thank the crowd for their support, saying: “That’s something that us tennis players, we just love, and we really appreciate it when there’s such high energy and and the crowd seems like they’re enjoying it. The format gives that vibe to the crowd also. They engage more in the matches, and it’s just super fun to be able to play in front of them and put on the show for them.”
And in a rowdy warm-up for the final, the crowd enjoyed an all-French encounter between Gael “La Monf” Monfils and Ugo “The Commander” Humbert. La Monf, always the showman, played an unorthodox return in the third quarter, using his forehead to nod it over the net.
The younger man won the match in sudden death, but the highlight was indisputably the crowd’s acapella rendition of La Marseillaise – during which both players headed to the net, wrapped their arms around each other, and joined in the singing.
Results
Final
Ruud 12-13, 16-14, 15-14, 15-11 Machac
Semi-finals
Machac 12-13, 12-11, 6-20, 17-13, 2-1 De Minaur
Ruud 14-11, 17-8, 13-15, 12-18, 3-2 Rublev
Classification matches
Popyrin 15-9, 16-14, 14-13 Shelton
Humbert 12-19, 17-13, 19-6, 11-16, 2-0 Monfils
