GENEVA: French Open champion Stan Wawrinka clinched his first homeground title on Saturday with a 6-4, 7-6 (13/11) victory over Marin Cilic in the Geneva claycourt final.
It was Wawrinka’s third title of 2016 and first on clay just a day before Roland Garros gets underway in Paris.
World number four and top seed Wawrinka broke the 11th-ranked Cilic to take a 2-1 lead on his way to the first set.
Cilic hit back for a 4-1 advantage in the second set before 31-year-old Wawrinka broke the Croat at 3-5 to get the second set back on serve.
In the tie-break, Cilic squandered five set points before Wawrinka took victory on his second match point.
Thiem overcomes injury to beat Zverev and defend Nice title
Top seeded Austrian Dominic Thiem overcame a late arm injury scare to defeat German teenager Alexander Zverev 6-4, 3-6, 6-0 on Saturday and retain his Nice clay-court title.
Thiem, the world number 15 who stunned Roger Federer at the Rome Masters last week, claimed the sixth title of his career in a timely boost ahead of the French Open which starts in Paris on Sunday.
Zverev, just 19 and ranked 48 in the world, was playing in his first tour final and was 4-2 up in the first set against his close friend.
But Thiem rallied and was 2-0 ahead in the second set, seemingly poised for a straightforward victory.
However, the highly-rated Zverev won six of the next seven games to force a decider.
Thiem summoned the trainer at the interval to have his right arm massaged and the treatment worked wonders as he claimed 24 of the 29 points in the third set to take victory.
Garcia sees off Lucic-Baroni to win Strasbourg title
Frenchwoman Caroline Garcia claimed her second WTA title by beating veteran Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in straight sets in the Strasbourg final on Saturday.
World number 55 Garcia had not even reached a quarter-final since February, but she saw off former Wimbledon semifinalist Lucic-Baroni with relative ease after an opening set that saw five breaks of serve.
The home player lost just three points on her serve as she raced through the second set, beating her Croatian opponent 6-4, 6-1 in an hour and a quarter, ahead of the French Open which starts on Sunday.
Lucic-Baroni last reached the final in Strasbourg 19 years ago when she was defeated by Steffi Graf.
It was Wawrinka’s third title of 2016 and first on clay just a day before Roland Garros gets underway in Paris.
World number four and top seed Wawrinka broke the 11th-ranked Cilic to take a 2-1 lead on his way to the first set.
Cilic hit back for a 4-1 advantage in the second set before 31-year-old Wawrinka broke the Croat at 3-5 to get the second set back on serve.
In the tie-break, Cilic squandered five set points before Wawrinka took victory on his second match point.
Thiem overcomes injury to beat Zverev and defend Nice title
Top seeded Austrian Dominic Thiem overcame a late arm injury scare to defeat German teenager Alexander Zverev 6-4, 3-6, 6-0 on Saturday and retain his Nice clay-court title.
Thiem, the world number 15 who stunned Roger Federer at the Rome Masters last week, claimed the sixth title of his career in a timely boost ahead of the French Open which starts in Paris on Sunday.
Zverev, just 19 and ranked 48 in the world, was playing in his first tour final and was 4-2 up in the first set against his close friend.
But Thiem rallied and was 2-0 ahead in the second set, seemingly poised for a straightforward victory.
However, the highly-rated Zverev won six of the next seven games to force a decider.
Thiem summoned the trainer at the interval to have his right arm massaged and the treatment worked wonders as he claimed 24 of the 29 points in the third set to take victory.
Garcia sees off Lucic-Baroni to win Strasbourg title
Frenchwoman Caroline Garcia claimed her second WTA title by beating veteran Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in straight sets in the Strasbourg final on Saturday.
World number 55 Garcia had not even reached a quarter-final since February, but she saw off former Wimbledon semifinalist Lucic-Baroni with relative ease after an opening set that saw five breaks of serve.
The home player lost just three points on her serve as she raced through the second set, beating her Croatian opponent 6-4, 6-1 in an hour and a quarter, ahead of the French Open which starts on Sunday.
Lucic-Baroni last reached the final in Strasbourg 19 years ago when she was defeated by Steffi Graf.
