Ariel Behar and Gonzalo Escobar have started the year on the right foot after taking home their first ATP Tour title at the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com.
Playing in their first tour-level championship match on Wednesday, Behar and Escobar edged past brothers Christian Harrison and Ryan Harrison to win 6-7(5), 7-6(4), 10-4.
“This doesn’t happen every day. We want it to happen a lot of times, but today we’re going to have fun and enjoy it,” Behar said after the match. “And then focus on Australia that we have to travel to early.”
Behar, of Uruguay, and Gonzalo Escobar, of Ecuador, turned heads last year on the ATP Challenger Tour when they lifted five trophies. They continued to stand out in Delray Beach – thanks in part to Behar’s colorful wardrobe – as they took down the top seeded team Jean-Julien Rojer and Marcelo Arevalo in the opening round.
They had to be focussed from the start against the Harrison brothers during the one hour and 43 minutes on court. They stayed locked on serve across the first two closely contested sets, despite creating 13 chances between both teams. After coming back in the second to make it one set apiece, the South Americans surged ahead in the Match Tie-Break toto become the first South American doubles champions at Delray Beach.
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“We’ve been in this position many times, not in ATP but in the Challengers,” Escobar said. “I think we’ve worked to be able to deal with it [well] and just try to play every point. And it worked. I think it all comes down to the everyday work, even if it looks like it’s not going to change anything.
“But I think that this week, something clicked, something seemed easier for us. And at the end, we got this title and it’s going to give us a little bit more confidence. I think it’s going to be a great year.”
The victory also makes Escobar the first Ecuadorian doubles champion on the ATP Tour since Nicolas Lapentti in 1999 Adelaide (w/Gustavo Kuerten).
from Tennis - ATP World Tour https://ift.tt/3qnt4SN
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