Tsitsipas slays the dragon with long-sought title

Stefanos Tsitsipas let out a huge sigh of relief as he drove a match point ace down the middle on Saturday to finally break his duck with a trophy at the ATP Dubai event.

The Greek will move back to the top 10 on No. 9 as a result of his 6-3, 6-3 final defeat of Felix Auger-Aliassime in what turned into a command performance for the 26-year-old.

Tsitsipas last won a title in April, 2024, as he claimed his third on clay at the Monte Carlo Masters. 

But the success in the Gulf desert reinforced his work to pull his game back together after a rough patch during the second half of last season.

And he said that nothing can compare to winning a trophy despite returning to the ATP ranking elite.

“I’ve been in the top 10 before,” the one-time world No. 3 said. “It’s not that it’s not great being back in the top 10, but I feel like the focus rightnow is the final redemption of getting back and winning the
Dubai tournament. 

“Especially when I failed twice (here). You don’t want to be losing the final for the third time. (It was) more of a motive to go out there and win today – I guess the top 10 comes with it, so it’s a great addition.”

Tsitsipas took her record past his Canadian opponent to seven wins from 10 matches.

The pair will cross the globe ASAP to arrive for ent start next week of the Indian Wells Masters, where he has never passed the quarters.

Tsitsipas knows he still has work to do.

“My eyes are on those small detailed improvements I can make in my game, such as being able to find my spots better on my serve. 

“(Also) making the opponent work harder to get to break point opportunities.
These are the type of things that I want to reassess, 

“I want to eye it as a target, and get better. Obviously not overnight, it’s going to take a while, but I’m committed to the process.”