Garin upsets Schwartzman to win title at Cordoba Open

Chilean Cristian Garin fought from behind for the third consecutive match to break Argentine hearts and defeat Diego Schwartzman to win his first title of 2020 at the Cordoba Open.

Both men had encountered a difficult path to the final, as Garin overcame unseeded Slovakian Andrej Martin 2-6 6-2 6-2 in the semifinals. Schwartzman had also fought past fourth seed Laslo Djere 6-1 1-6 6-2 in his semifinal match.

Schwartzman was hoping to win his first title on home soil, and broke the Chilean three times in the first set. With the crowd definitely on his side, the top seed claimed the first set 6-2 as Garin struggled to develop a rhythm.

Despite the slow start, Garin was able to steady himself and began to apply more pressure to the home favorite. Employing a more aggressive game, the third seed was able to break the Argentine twice before winning the second set 6-4.

Although the pro-Schwartzman crowd attempted to spur their man on, he was completely overwhelmed by Garin in the final set. This was evident in the Chilean's intensity and willingness to attack from the baseline. Schwartzman was left scrambling to keep balls in play as Garin refused to back down.

To the disappointment of the home crowd, Garin finally hit a forehand return winner that sealed the match 2-6 6-4 6-0 in just over two hours.

Garin is garnering a reputation as a threat on this surface, finishing the 2019 clay-court season with two titles (Munich, Houston). After losing all three matches at the inaugural ATP Cup, the World No.31 will hope to build his confidence heading towards Roland Garros.

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