No. 3 Taylor Fritz had to wait an additional day to secure his first ATP title of the season, beating upstart Spaniard Rafael Jodar 7-6(2), 6-4 to win his first DC Open title Monday.
The title is Fritz’s 11th of his career and his first in the District, becoming only the second American man in the last 18 years to win the Washington trophy.
“It gives me a huge boost to putting me in a huge spot for World Tour Finals and giving me that belief that I can be injured, I can be taking the clay court season off, and as long as I’m playing and I’m healthy, then, I mean, I’m top 8 in the race right now, so it gives me a lot of belief in myself and my own abilities,” Fritz said.
Fritz and Jodar never made it on Stadium Court for their originally scheduled match on Sunday, delayed by thunderstorms that lasted all day and delayed the conclusion of the preceeding women’s final.
Neither man yielded on serve in the first set, forcing a tiebreak. Fritz got the mini break before the changeover, and leading 5-2 cranked serves of 125 mph and 139 mph that Jodar couldn’t control the return on as the American took the first set, 7-6(2)
“He was hitting the ball really big in the beginning. It was also very windy in the beginning. It stayed windy the whole match. It was always easier to serve on the side that I served the match out on,” Fritz said. “You had some wind helping. It was just easier to finish points, get some extra power.”
A 12-minute game opened the second set, with Fritz finally breaking Jodar on the 12th point, then grabbing another two games later to build a 3-0 lead. Jodar gained one break back after Fritz double faulted, but appeared limited after later slipping behind the baseline and tweaking his right wrist. The 19-year-old took a quick medical time out before the final game, and beat back four championship points before Fritz closed out the match on his fourth advantage opportunity.
“It’s always going to be, like, a bit nerve-racking and a bit of pressure when you’re serving for a title,” Fritz said. “I almost felt like him taking the timeout helped me a little bit just to fully calm down and be very, like, composed when I stepped up to start serving for the match.”
Both players move on to the Masters 1000 series event in Canada, with Fritz rising to become the top-rated American in the world at No. 9, while Jodar will jump to a career-high No. 15 on the back of his Washington run and a stellar clay court season.
“I think this week will help me to develop a lot and to get a lot of experience, especially on hard court, which is the first tournament of this swing until the U.S. Open,” Jodar said. “This gives me confidence and perspective that if I do the things well and in the right way, with positive mentality, will help me to be consistent.”
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