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Confronted with a Frances Tiafoe who wouldn’t go away, Flavio Cobolli dug down and located one other gear. The 23-year-old Italian fought off Tiafoe in Saturday’s Abierto Mexicano Telcel remaining in Acapulco and booked his third profession title—and his first on laborious courts—with a 7-6(4), 6-4 victory.
Cobolli, who will rise to a career-high No. 15 in Monday’s ATP rankings, performed magnificently along with his forehand. He spent a lot of the night time belting winners from inconceivable spots on the courtroom to maintain momentum in a tense affair. For Tiafoe, it was a stinging loss as he was bidding for his first profession ATP 500 title after per week outlined by “Houdini” escapes.
Tiafoe survived two match factors towards Aleksandar Kovacevic within the spherical of 16, however his luck ran out towards Cobolli in Saturday’s remaining.
Having each survived three-set marathons within the semifinals—Cobolli over Miomir Kecmanovic and Tiafoe over Brandon Nakashima—the pair nonetheless traded high-octane blows in a gap set that lasted effectively over an hour. Cobolli didn’t face a single break level within the first set and confirmed veteran composure to rally from 3-1 down within the tiebreak.
The Italian took a break lead within the second however was reeled again within the eighth sport because the Acapulco crowd roared for a decider. Nonetheless, Cobolli refused to let the American’s momentum swell, breaking again instantly and serving out the match shortly after. He completed with 34 winners and turns into the primary Italian to win an ATP title in 2026.
With the win Cobolli turns into the fourth participant born within the 2000s to win ATP 500 titles on completely different surfaces, becoming a member of Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Arthur Fils on that checklist.
Cobolli, at 23 years and 9 months, is the youngest participant to win in Acapulco since Dominic Thiem a decade in the past.
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