
Welcome to Winner’s Circle, a segment where we review each winner of every ATP and WTA tournament during the truncated 2020 season.
This edition features Czech veteran Jiri Vesely, who battled to save match points in two consecutive matches before winning his second overall ATP title at the Tata Open Maharashtra.
Tata Open Maharashtra
Winner: Jiri Vesely
With only one win on the ATP main draw, Vesely was having a forgettable 2020 season. The Czech entered the Tata Open unseeded, and defeated 612th-ranked Arjun Kadhe 6-2 6-4 in the first round. He proceeded to upset seventh seed Salvatore Caruso 7-6(5) 6-4 in the second round to finally win two matches in a row.
Awaiting Vesely in the quarterfinals was unseeded Belarusian Ilya Ivashka, who had upset third-seeded Stefano Travaglia in the second round. In a match that lasted two and a half hours, Vesely saved two match points in the final set to secure a 2-6 6-1 7-6(11) victory.
With top seed Benoit Paire falling in the second round, the path to the final seemed less tedious. However, Vesely faced a difficult challenge in second seed Ricardas Berankis. The Lithuanian had claimed their sole previous encounter in a marathon five-setter at the 2019 US Open. This semifinal encounter also went the distance, with Vesely having to survive four match points before advancing 6-7(8) 7-6(3) 7-6(7) to his third ATP final.
The Czech faced eight-seeded Egor Gerasimov, who was hoping to become just the second Belarusian to win an ATP Tour singles title (Max Mirnyi triumphed in Rotterdam 2003). Using powerful groundstrokes and his superior serve, Vesely hit 26 aces and was able to overpower Gerasimov 7-6(2) 5-7 6-3 to claim his second ATP title.
The 26-year old waited five years after his maiden ATP title at Auckland before adding a second trophy to his collection. He became just the eighth player since 2013 to save match points in two matches en route to an ATP title. Furthermore, this victory saw his ranking rise from World No.107 to No.72 on the FedEx ATP rankings.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEcpjikadzY[/embed]
Growing up in a household where soccer was king, my earliest memories are filled with chants from packed stadiums and the rhythm of a ball being passed across neighborhood streets. But somewhere along the way, the quiet elegance and raw emotion of tennis pulled me in. What began as a curiosity became a lifelong passion; not just for the sport itself, but for the stories it tells: of grit, of heartbreak, of improbable comebacks and human resilience.
As a tennis writer, I bring the observational lens of someone who didn’t grow up in the sport, but fell in love with it as an outsider; a perspective that lets me see both its technical beauty and its emotional depth. Over the years working with TennisUpToDate, I’ve had the privilege of reaching more than 3.5 million readers worldwide, with one of my features ranking among the site’s top three articles.
With a background in storytelling and a creative mind always searching for meaning beyond the scoreboard, I aim to craft narratives that go deeper than results and rankings. Whether it’s a rising star breaking through or a veteran fighting off Father Time, I try to capture the heartbeat behind the headlines.
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