MONTE CARLO: Flamboyant Italian Fabio Fognini followed up his shock victory over Rafael Nadal with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Serbian Dusan Lajovic to claim his maiden Masters title in Monte Carlo on Sunday.

The 31-year-old triumphed despite suffering from an apparent muscle problem to became the lowest seeded player, at 13, to claim the title since Gustavo Kuerten in 1999.

Five weeks before the French Open kicks off at Roland Garros, Fognini produced some brilliant tennis on Monte Carlo’s red clay to snatch his ninth ATP singles title.

Fognini, based just 20 kilometres over the border in San Remo, became the first from Italy to lift a trophy here in 51 years, following on from Nicola Pietrangeli, who watched his record fall from the royal box at the Monte Carlo Country Club.

Pietrangeli won the trophy in the principality in 1961, 1967 and 1968.

“I was born nearby so this is extraordinary,” Fognini, 31, said. “I started the season rather badly, so this is unbelievable. I’m very content with this victory, especially with all of the Italians here today.”

After going out in the third round of the Australian Open, Fognini had won only one match and lost six times before this tournament.

The 48th-ranked Lajovic was playing in the first ATP final of his career and got to the title match without the loss of a set.

Fognini needed a medical timeout to receive treatment to his right foot after breaking Lajovic for 3-2 in the second after claiming the opening set in 44 minutes.

But it did not impede him as he served out the match, clinching victory on his second match point when Lajovic hit a forehand wide.

Fognini came to the first major week of the pre-Roland Garros run-up with a 0-4 record on the clay, the surface he grew up on.

Among his victims this week was number three Alexander Zverev, and his stunning stunning 6-4, 6-2 victory over Nadal on Saturday to become the first player to beat Spanish star here since Novak Djokovic in the 2015 semi-finals.

Lajovic beat 10th-seeded Daniil Medvedev 7-5, 6-1 in the other semi-final.

Published in Dawn, April 22nd, 2019