By Tennis Now | Sunday, February 17, 2019
Defending with vigor, Gael Monfils beat his "brother" Stan Wawrinka, 6-3, 1-6, 6-2, to claim his eighth career title in Rotterdam.
Photo credit: www.tennisimages.com/Henk Koster
Golden confetti rained down on Gael Monfils.
A savvy Monfils withstood the thunder from Stan Wawrinka for a well-earned celebratory shower in Rotterdam.
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Defending with vigor, Monfils mixed shots shrewdly in the final set subduing Wawrinka, 6-3, 1-6, 6-2, to claim his eighth career title in Rotterdam.
It was the tournament's first clash of unseeded finalists in 11 years.
A final of sudden momentum shifts turned in the decider as Monfils' skill extending points and coaxing the 33-year-old Swiss into playing an extra shot paid dividends.
The 32-year-old Frenchman saved seven of 10 break points, including a break point in the final game with a bold drop shot-forehand combination, to collect his first title since the 2018 Doha.
The acrobatic Frenchman pulled off the surprise serve-and-volley play to earn championship point. Monfils closed in one hour, 44 minutes improving to 8-21 in career finals.
Monfils celebrated a special title sharing the spotlight—and the love—with his "brother", buddy and frequent practice partner.
"Stan, you know I love you," Monfils said during the trophy presentation. "You're my brother. This win is a part of him. We've been practicing a lot, we've been talking a lot this winter. Actually, you threaten me if I didn't win one of the tournaments, you won't practice with me, so... Congratulations, this was a good week for you too. And I hope we will have many more battles."
It was Monfils' first win over Wawrinka since a straight-sets victory in Valencia nearly eight years ago, as he leveled their head-to-head series at three wins apiece.
"It's always tough to lose in the final— especially in the final like tonight," Wawrinka said looking directly at the victor during the trophy presentation. "If I I have to lose to someone, I am happy to to lose to you, Gael, you're a great friend. Congratulations to you."
Resilience sparked this Rotterdam run. Monfils overcame a jarring first-set fall and a 1-4 second-set deficit defeating David Goffin, 7-6 (5), 7-5, in his Rotterdam opener.
After that, he scored three-set wins over Andreas Seppi and fifth-seeded Daniil Medvedev, avenging his Sofia semifinal loss to the Russian.
Denied his bid for a 17th career title, Wawrinka can be encouraged by his week.
The 2015 champion, who was moving fluidly, knocked off three dangerous seeds: fourth-seeded Milos Raonic, 10th-seeded Denis Shapovalov and top-seeded Kei Nishikori powering into his 29th career final.
The three-time Grand Slam champion "For me, it's my first final since my surgery," Wawrinka said. "This week was something special for sure. I'm really happy with the way I was playing all week even though I lost today.
"That's the reason I came back from my surgery: to play in a court like that, to play in an atmosphere like that."
This eighth career title touched Monfils' heart because it came it Rotterdam where his tennis idol, Arthur Ashe, reigned in 1975-76.
"It's the second tournament I can put my tournament next to my idol, Arthur Ashe, so it means a lot," Monfils said.