Men’s Final: [17] Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) vs. [49] Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP)
Twice this year Carreno Busta tried to win his first career ATP singles title. Would he be third time lucky today? Things looked rather grim after he lost the first set in a tiebreak from a winning position. Visibly shaken from that mental collapse, he was broken first in the second set. He would be tested; memories of losing two previous finals had to be weighing heavily on his mind. Further complicating the picture was the knowledge that he was playing a fellow countryman. Could he push those negative thoughts aside and fight his way back into the match?
Bautista Agut was not exactly brimming with confidence. Yesterday he led 5-0 in the second set against Viktor Troicki and managed to lose that set in a tiebreak. Yet, he had experience on his side and Carreno Busta had yet to win a title. How did he turn this match around? He got some help from his opponent who was struggling with fatigue and his backhand. Through it all though, he continued to serve well and that helped him to slowly rebuild his confidence as the match progressed. He won his first career ATP singles title after three tries 6-7(6), 7-6(1), 6-4. The talent I have always seen in him is finally paying dividends. I hope he goes very far in the draw; I just don’t want him to beat Rafael Nadal though.
