Winner's Circle: Garin battles his way to Cordoba title

This edition features rising Chilean star Cristian Garin, as he showcased his improving prowess on clay to claim his third career title at the 2020 Cordoba Open.

Having fallen in the second round at the Australian Open (l. to Raonic), Garin was eager to notch his second win of the season. With a preference for the red dirt, the Chilean fancied his odds at the Cordoba Open. This event was the first clay-court tournament of the season and Garin had augmented his 2019 clay campaign with titles in Houston and Munich.

Seeded third, Garin brushed past Hungarian Attila Balazs 6-3 6-0 in the second round. He faced sixth-seeded Uruguayan Pablo Cuevas in the quarterfinals, rallying from a set down to win 1-6 6-3 6-4 in just under two hours.

The Chilean was once again forced to come from a set down in the semifinals, where he faced unseeded Slovak Andrej Martin. Garin was able to stifle Martin's aggressive play and prevail 2-6 6-2 6-2 in a two-hour thriller.

Awaiting Garin in the final was top seed and home favorite Diego Schwartzman, who had battled past Serbian Laslo Djere in the other semifinal. Schwartzman held a 2-1 career lead over his Chilean opponent, prevailing in their most recent encounter in the round robin stage at the 2019 Davis Cup Finals.

For the third consecutive match, Garin lost the opening set as the Argentine crowd tried to will Schwartzman to victory. However, the 23-year old increased his intensity and aggression, breaking the top seed twice to claim the second set. It was all Garin in the third, as he employed his booming groundstrokes to overpower Schwartzman from the baseline. The Chilean prevailed 2-6 6-4 6-0 to win his third career title, breaking Argentinian hearts in the process.

Sporting some newly found confidence, Garin would also rise in the ATP rankings, moving up five spots to World No.26.

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