Ruud topples Shapovalov to win Geneva Open

GENEVA: Third seed Casper Ruud warmed up for the French Open by claiming his second career title on the ATP Tour after beating Denis Shapovalov 7-6 (8-6), 6-4 in the final of the claycourt Geneva Open on Saturday.

Norwegian Ruud did not concede a single break point to the Canadian second seed to prevail in the battle of the 22-year-olds and add to the Argentina Open title he won last year.

Neither player blinked in the opening set, which went with serve but Ruud almost lost his way in the tiebreak when Shapovalov fought back from 6-2 down to 6-6.

However, the Norwegian kept his cool and won his fifth set point when Shapovalov directed a volley into the net.

In the second set, Ruud converted his fifth break point of the match to go 3-2 up and never looked back, clinching the title when Shapovalov’s return on match point went long.

“This week has been unbelievable for me,” said Ruud, whose ranking is set to rise from No 21. “[The weather] has been challenging this week but it was nice to get some sun today. I’m looking forward to Paris, I hope I can be in the second week.”

World number 15 Shapovalov said he would take some time off to recover physically before heading to Paris. “I do think it’s a tournament I can do really well in. I do see myself going deep there in the future. It’s a place that I like to play,” he said.