NEWPORT — Marcos Giron’s career surge was brewing for years.
Dallas showcased the California native in its finals in February and Florida welcomed him to the semifinal round a week later. The 30-year-old didn’t achieve his first ATP Tour final appearance until 2022 — since then a title has been knocking.
Giron waited for Newport to capture his breakthrough tour triumph. The veteran rallied from a late deficit in the third set vs. Alex Michelsen to hoist the Van Alen Cup with a 6-7, 6-3, 7-5 effort on pristine grass and under picturesque skies.
“Overall, I feel like every year I've kind of kept improving,” Giron said. “I've kept improving and keep improving. I keep going at it and I believe that I can do damage.”
With Michelsen leading, 5-4, in the third frame, Giron survived break point with a 119-mph ace and took advantage under nervy conditions in the final current format of the Infosys Hall of Fame Open. Giron finished off the game with three straight points. And he took his sixth game after cruising to a 40-15 advantage.
The final game lasted slightly more than two minutes and ended with an exclamation point — Giron’s 13th ace.
“I think if you live in ignorance and think [the losses] is something that's never going to happen again, it's going to happen,” Giron said. “I think the tour will humble you every single week, and if you don't learn and get better, you will find out.”
Second-seeded Giron went to three sets in the round of 16, lost just five games in the quarterfinals and finished off the semifinals with a 6-2 win in the third set against No. 4 Christopher Eubanks.
“The margins are so small, and it's never over until you shake hands,” Giron said. “It's crazy in that way and it's a cool sport in that way.”
Last summer was an extreme trial run for Michelsen. Undecided on turning to Georgia or the tennis tour this time last year, Michelsen lost in the Infosys Hall of Fame Open in straight sets. The finals appearance turned him to the tour and he nearly made right at Newport Casino in his second chance.
The tournament’s third seed, he returned to Newport this season and reached Sunday’s final without needing a third set. The 19-year-old topped Reilly Opelka with ease in the semifinals, 6-2, 6-0, and a perfect run to the crown was nearly realized for the young competitor.
“It was quite an epic one against Michelsen and he's a great player,” Giron said. “He's here to stay.”
After falling in the first two games of the opening set, Michelsen rallied for a 4-3 advantage in the frame. He won his crucial sixth point, to break a 5-all tie, in a 16-minute game. Michelsen then forced back-to-back errors to win the point on a 116-mph first serve. In the tie-breaker for the first set, Michelsen blitzed to a 6-2 advantage and closed out the frame winning on an eight-shot rally.
Giron rose to No. 38 in the ATP rankings with the triumph.
“I've been working a long time for it,” Giron said. “It feels great to [finally] win the last point in the week.”
European duo wins doubles' crown
The Swedish and Dutch pairing of Andre Goransson and Sem Verbeek chose the perfect time to debut on the ATP Tour.
The duo dropped just one set this week and raced to the doubles title at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open. In just under an hour, the two dispatched the reigning NCAA champions, Robert Cash and James Tracy, 6-3, 6-4.
“It feels amazing to do it together,” Goransson said. “We've been working together for a few months now and … we're great friends. There's really no one I’d rather do it with.”
Verbeek is the first Dutchman to win the doubles title at Newport and Goransson brought Sweden the crown for the first time since 1988.
"[Newport’s] meant a lot to me as well because it was my first-ever ATP that I played here,” Verbeek said. “And then to win it is obviously a very special send off for me.”
jrousseau@providencejournal.com
On X: @ByJacobRousseau
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Giron gets first ATP Tour singles victory in Tennis Hall of Fame Open
Most Popular
Comments / 0