Alejandro Davidovich Fokina finally broke through for his first ATP Tour championship on Saturday, taking down Ethan Quinn 7-6 (4), 6-3 at the Mallorca Championships.
The second-seeded Spaniard made history in the process, becoming the first Spanish player to win the grass-court event in its six-year existence. The 27-year-old had reached tour-level finals five times before without capturing a title — Saturday marked his sixth attempt and his first victory.
Davidovich Fokina wrapped up the match in 1 hour and 44 minutes, closing it out with his sixth ace of the day against the unseeded American. He successfully defended three of four break point opportunities while benefiting from seven double faults committed by Quinn, who fell short in his own bid for a maiden tour title.
At the Lexus Eastbourne Open in England, rain brought the final to a halt Saturday before it could be completed. Sixth-seeded Ugo Humbert and Zizou Bergs were only into the first set when players were pulled from the court. At the time of the suspension, Humbert held a 2-1 lead in the opening set after saving a break point in the third game. Bergs had been serving at 15/30 in the fourth game when the delay began. After waiting more than three and a half hours, officials decided to push the conclusion to Sunday, with play set to restart at 11 a.m. local time from where it left off.
Both players have extra motivation heading into the final — Bergs is still chasing his first-ever ATP Tour title, while Humbert is looking to add his first championship of this season. The two are also scheduled to meet again in the opening round at Wimbledon next week.
