Playing in his first ATP Tour final, Tirante has been remarkable ever since. In the second set, he broke at 4-3 and held it out, and neither player gave up in the decider. The Argentine took a 3-2 lead with a mini-break in the tie-break, then faded a bit as Fritz won the final five points. Tirante finished with 10 aces and 35 winners, compared to 7 and 22 for Fritz, but also 36 unforced errors compared to 21.
The title moves Fritz up to world No. 9. It was his sixth final of the season, the most he has reached in a year, after he lost to Lorenzo Musetti in the Lyon final last month. With this victory, he continues his run of at least two ATP titles starting in 2022.
Tyrant’s memorable week
Tirante, ranked No. 51, defeated Fritz in their only previous meeting in Montreal in August. In Stockholm, the Argentinian became the first player from his country to reach an indoor tour final since Diego Schwartzman in Antwerp in 2021, defeating Alejandro Tabillo in the semi-finals on a day he spoke of mental health issues in recent years.
Fritz now heads to Tours as the second alternate for the Nitto ATP Finals.