By Richard Pagliaro | Sunday, April 21, 2019
Embracing the most profound pressure of his career, Fabio Fognini met the moment on the rise—and celebrated it kissing dirt.
The 31-year-old Fognini defeated Dusan Lajovic, 6-3, 6-4, in today's Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters final to capture the biggest title of his career and make history as the first Italian to claim a Masters 1000 championship.
Watch: Fognini Shocks Nadal
Soaring to his ninth career title, Fognini celebrated dropping to his knees and kissing the red clay in joy.
"I'm really, really happy," said Fognini afterward as fans chanted his name. "I have to take a shower and think about it. Because it's something really, really incredible."
A day after the creative Fognini showed fire and finesse snapping 11-time champion Rafael Nadal’s 18-match Monte-Carlo winning streak and 25 straight sets in stirring style, he took the court facing several key questions: How would he cope with the pressure as favorite against first-time ATP finalist Lajovic? How would his banged-up body, sporting almost as much tape to rival Janko Tipsarevic’s tattoos, hold up to another stress test? And how would he respond tactically against Lajovic, who is coached by Fognini's former coach Jose Perlas?
A calm Fognini responded with rousing shot-making converting four of five break points in a one hour, 38-minute triumph.
"I prepared as best as I can," Fognini said. "He has my ex-coach and I was knowing it was gonna be really tough, a lot of running. I don’t know what to say. I’m really, really happy."
Fognini hugged wife Flavia Pennetta in the support box in celebration of his ninth career title that will vault him to a career-high rank of No. 12.
The 48th-ranked Lajovic, who had never strung four straight ATP main-draw wins together prior to this week, entered the final winning 10 straight sets with inspired conquests of 16th-seeded David Goffin, fourth-seeded Dominic Thiem and 10th-seeded Daniil Medvedev.
The 28-year-old Serbian enjoyed a career week, but looked increasingly depleted as the final progressed and could not solve Fognini’s flair for the big strike on pivotal points.
In the third game, Lajovic broke at 30 when Fognini scattered a forehand long.
Bidding to become the first unseeded Monte-Carlo champion since Thomas Muster in 1992, Lajovic saved a break point with an electric touch net exchange that left Fognini sprawling across the clay losing his blue Babolat racquet.
Regrouping, a recharged Fognini began to impose his game. Taking a centered shot on the rise, Fognini cranked a forehand for another break point breaking for 4-2.
Though he was playing with blue kinesiology tape snaking his right calf and white adhesive tape wrapping his ankles and wrists, Fognini was moving smoothly when the ball was in play and strutting with confidence between points.
Exploring the front court with brilliant finesse, Fognini forced Lajovic to defend more space on one of the slowest red clay courts on the circuit than the Serbian had in his straight-sets wins over David Goffin, Roland Garros runner-up Dominic Thiem and 10th-seeded Daniil Medvedev earlier in the tournament.
Reading the court, creating space and knowing exactly when to change direction and drive the dagger down the line separate Fognini from most on this surface.
Fognini flashed a clean backhand down line to seal the 45-minute opening set and move to within one set of his first Masters crown.
Navigating the first set, Fognini lost his sense of direction only when sitting down.
Winless in four clay-court matches before arriving in the Principality, Fognini started the second set of the final in full flight.
An Agassi-like ability to abbreviate his back swings and take the ball on the rise is a Fognini asset. So is his unsettling ability to inject a rush of pace off seemingly the same swing.
Fognini drilled a forehand down the line breaking at 30 to start the second set.
Whipping a wicked backhand down the line, the Serbian responded breaking back as he started moving Fognini laterally more frequently.
Sending Fognini wide with a backhand, Lajovic had an open court but nudged a backhand drop shot into the tape to face break point in the fifth game.
Meanwhile, a wincing Fognini clutched at the back of his right leg as if stricken by a muscle spasm or cramp in his hamstring.
A jittery Lajovic scattered a forehand down the line wide. Fognini broke for 3-2 and immediately took a medical timeout for re-taping of his right ankle and a full tape job on his right hamstring.
Would the operatic Italian be able to close his biggest title or could Lajovic exploit an apparently wounded opponent?
Testing Fognini’s legs immediately, Lajovic jerked him around the court and then, in a moment he will rue, he jumped a bit too high for a routine smash and badly bungled the shot into the net.
That mind-numbing miss was reprieve for Fognini. Instead of facing break point, he had game point and held on a forehand error for 4-2.
Tomahawking a smash, Fognini capped a love hold for 5-3 inciting chants of “Fabio! Fabio!” from some fans in the crowd.
Serving for the biggest title of his career, Fognini paused a minute as the wind whipped up a brief cloud of clay.
On his second championship point, Fognini watched a shanked forehand float long, covered his face with his blue shirt then broke into the wide grin of a Masters champion.
A month away from celebrating his 32nd birthday, Fognini has ascended to a professional peak.
The creative shot-maker joins Indian Wells champion Thiem, Karen Khachanov (2018 Paris), John Isner (2018 Miami), Juan Martin del Potro (2018 Indian Wells), Jack Sock (2017 Paris), Grigor Dimitrov (2017 Cincinnati) and Alexander Zverev (2016 Rome) as the eighth first-time champion in the last 17 Masters 1000 events. In the 92 Masters tournaments prior to the 2017 Rome, there were just eight maiden Masters champions.
Delivering some of the most dynamic tennis of his career, Fognini had an immediate goal afterward: rest.
"Right now I’m really tired of course because I run a lot the whole week," Fognini said. "And you know I would like to take two or three days off. So beating Rafa in the semis and Zverev and (winning the) finals is always really tough to play. I’d like to enjoy with my family tonight and that’s it."
Photo credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images/Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters