DAVYDENKO NETS FIRST TITLE

ATP TOUR 2003

DAVYDENKO NETS FIRST TITLE

Russia's Nikolay Davydenko claimed his first ever ATP Tour title with victory over Kristof Vliegen in Adelaide on Sunday.
Davydenko defeated the Belgian qualifier, another final debutant, 6-2 7-6 (7-3) to capture the AAPT Championships hardcourt event.
The 21-year-old Davydenko, who turned professional in 2000 and is ranked 81st in the world, recorded upsets over fourth seed Ivan Ljubicic, fifth seed Mariano Zabaleta and veteran Adrian Voinea this week.
His five ATP match victories in this event equal almost half of his total of 12 last year.
Davydenko broke serve in the fifth and seventh games of the match and took the first set in 31 minutes. He snatched Vliegen's serve in the fifth game of the second set and was serving for the match at 5-4 before getting the jitters.
"As I said yesterday, I could be nervous because it was my first title, and at 5-4 it happened," Davydenko said. "I was nervous, but I just tried to relax in the tie-break."
He added: "Some players are in the top 100 and never get a title, so for me to win my first title at 21 is good."
This week also marked a breakthrough for Vliegen, who had not won a main draw ATP match before this event.
The 20-year-old Belgian came through qualifying and ousted third seed Thomas Enqvist, sixth seed Alberto Martin and former Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek en route to his first final.
"Even though I lost, the final for me was positive," said Vliegen. "I know what I have to work on."

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