Britain’s Evans wins Washington title

Washington (AFP): US teen star Coco Gauff and Britain’s Dan Evans captured titles with straight-set triumphs on Sunday at the ATP and WTA Washington Open.

World number seven Gauff won her fourth career WTA title by defeating Greece’s ninth-ranked Maria Sakkari 6-2, 6-3 while 30th-ranked Evans dispatched 37th-ranked

Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor 7-5, 6-3 at the hardcourt event, a US Open tuneup. Gauff, at 19 the youngest Washington WTA finalist, added to a trophy haul that also included 2019 at Linz, 2021 in Parma and this past January at Auckland. The success came after a first-round exit at Wimbledon last month.

“It was really tough a couple weeks ago,” Gauff said. “We were all feeling it and I’m glad that I was able to bounce back.”

Gauff, last year’s French Open runner-up, had lost four of five prior matches against Sakkari, who fell to 1-7 in WTA finals with her sixth consecutive loss in a tour championship match. “It’s pretty disappointing, but a month ago we didn’t think I’d be here,” Sakkari said.

Evans, a 33-year-old Englishman whose only prior ATP title came in a 2021 outdoor Melbourne event, became the first British champion in Washington since Tim Henman in 2003.

Evans, with only eight tour-level wins this year entering the week, will advance to a new career high of 21st in the world after arriving in the US capital on a seven-match tour-level losing streak.

“I couldn’t have really thought about this at the start of the week. Amazing week,” Evans said. “It means the world to me. It genuinely does.” Griekspoor was denied his third career title after crowns at Pune in January and ‘s-Hertogenbosch in June. “First time in DC, making finals, not too bad I guess,” Griekspoor said.

Griekspoor, 27, saved a set point in the 10th game with an ace wide but Evans broke him in the 12th game to take the first set when the Dutchman netted a backhand after 53 minutes.

Evans had 14 winners to only three unforced errors in the opening set. The second set was halted at 2-2 by lightning and resumed after a delay of about two hours and 20 minutes.

Evans broke at love for a 5-3 lead, a backhand winner and backhand lob winner setting up a break the Dutchman surrendered on a double fault.

The Englishman saved four break points in a tense ninth game and after nearly 10 minutes blasted a service winner on his first championship point to take the title after one hour and 41 minutes.

Gauff, who didn’t drop a set all week, won the first in 42 minutes but Sakkari broke her to begin the second. They traded service breaks in the fourth and fifth games but Sakkari double faulted away another break to lift Gauff level at 3-3.

Gauff held, broke in the eighth game when Sakkari swatted a forehand beyond the baseline, and held again to complete the victory after 84 minutes on a backhand winner. Sakkari, 28, won her only prior WTA title at the 2019 Morocco Open.