By Richard Pagliaro | Sunday, May 5, 2019
Cristian Garin edged Matteo Berrettini, 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (1), in the Munich final claiming his second title of the year and propelling his ranking to a projected career-high of No. 35.
Photo credit: @BMWOpenbyFWU
Armed with all-court skills and closing power, Cristian Garin continues to drive through the learning curve with purpose.
In a battle of young champions, Garin snapped Matteo Berrettini's nine-match winning streak with a pulsating 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (1) triumph in the Munich final to capture his second title of the season.
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Garin denied eight of 10 break points and played with aggression in the decisive tie breaker to raise his record to 19-6.
"I'm so excited right now," Garin said. "It's amazing. I cannot believe it, so I'm very happy."
The victory vaults the world No. 47 to a projected career-high rank of No. 35 as Garin moves closer to securing a seed for Roland Garros.
The 22-year-old Chilean has won 12 of his last 13 matches, including last month's Houston title.
The journey to the Munich championship saw Garin fight off match points to stun third-ranked Alexander Zverev, 6-4, 5-7, 7-5, before sweeping 2018 Roland Garros semifinalist Marco Cecchinator in the semifinals.
Empowered by his run to the Budapest title last week, Berrettini battled hard playing his second match of the day.
On a chilly, damp day that saw several fans wrapped in parkas, Berrettini opened the day dispatching fourth-seeded Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-4, 6-2, in the semifinal that was originally scheduled for yesterday, but was pushed to this morning due to rain.
Ranked as low as No. 373 on January 15th, 2018, Garin launched the 2019 season managing just four games in an Australian Open loss to David Goffin. Gaining confidence on a weekly basis, the man who grew up playing in the altitude of Santiago, Chile is playing with the conviction of a one who can continue rocketing up the rankings.
Theres a lot to like about Garin's game—he has a fast first step, abbreviates his back swing to take the ball early, can drive the ball down the line off either wing and he's fearless moving forward—but his competitiveness may be his best weapon of all.
Garin raised his 2019 record to 8-0 in decisive sets and improved to 8-3 in tie breaks.
The 23-year-old Berrettini has big weapons—the 6'5" Italian can thump the serve, finish with his forehand and moves fluidly around the clay—but Garin showed a more complete game at crunch time. The Chilean doesn't possess one exceptional weapon, but he does everything well and has answers from every area of court.
Earning double-break points, Garin slid his two-hander down the line, danced around a backhand and lashed an inside-in forehand winner breaking for 5-3.
Berrettini stalled the celebration breaking right back in the ninth game.
Confronting triple break point, Garin rifled a forehand pass to save the first, ripped an ace to erase the second the. Berrettini amped up the grunt and the spin on a forehand approach down the line showing exquisite feel in flicking a forehand drop volley to break back.
An energized Berrettini burst through a love hold to back up the break and put the pressure right back on the Chilean.
Slashing an ace down the T, Garin took a 3-1 tie-break lead.
Sliding several feet behind the baseline, Garin banged a backhand pass crosscourt for a fistful of championship points at 6-1.
Streaking forward, Garin carved out a backhand volley winner to seal an impressive two hour, eight-minute victory.