Monday, January 9, 2012

Tsonga beats Monfils in Qatar final

DOHA — Jo-Wilfried Tsonga shrugged off a slow start and beat Gael Monfils 7-5, 6-3 in an all-French final at the Qatar Open on Saturday, giving himself a confidence boost for the Australian Open.

The sixth-ranked Tsonga, who reached the final when Roger Federer withdrew with an injury, fell behind 3-1 before finding a rhythm, coming to the net more often and reeling off the final four games to win the first set.

The momentum carried over into the second set, when Tsonga kept Monfils off balance with his powerful forehand and occasional drop volleys. Tsonga broke Monfils to go up 4-2 and won the match when Monfils hit a backhand into the net after a long rally.

"At the beginning, it was bit difficult. He broke me very early and it was tough," Tsonga said. "But in my head, everything was right, OK, I'm one break down. I will continue to play my game and make him run a lot. I think it was good solution. After that, he was bit tired of that and I was better than him."

His eighth career title also came in his third successive final. The previous two were at the end of last year, in the Paris Masters and ATP Finals, when he lost to Federer each time. The Swiss star pulled out of their Friday semifinal because of back spasms, hoping to be ready for the Australian Open starting on Jan. 16.

Tsonga said he was counting on his Doha success to carry over to Melbourne, where he was a finalist in 2008. He refused to predict how deep he can go in the tournament, partly because he didn't face Federer, Rafael Nadal or No. 1-ranked Novak Djokovic in this tournament.

"You know, my target is to go as far as possible, of course. If I can win it, I will," he said. "I think of it, and I really want it, like I think most of the other players. So I do everything for that, and this is why it's exciting, because I don't know if I will do it one day or not. But anyway, I work for that, and my ambition is to win a Grand Slam."

BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA — Andy Murray is one tournament into a partnership with new coach Ivan Lendl and already it has netted a title.

The No. 4-ranked Murray warmed up for the Australian Open with a commanding 6-1, 6-3 win over third-seeded Alexandr Dolgopolov in the Brisbane International final.

The victory provided the ideal start to Murray's partnership with Lendl, and the eight-time Grand Slam winner was courtside for only the second time when the 24-year-old Scot lifted the Roy Emerson Trophy.

"I'd like to thank my team . . . Mr. Lendl, he's up there somewhere, hiding," Murray said of his new coach. "It's my first week with this new team and it was good. I really enjoyed it. Hopefully it'll bring more success in the future."

The 24-year-old Murray's next task is the Australian Open, where he has lost the past two finals, to be 0-3 in major finals overall — a statistic he's desperate to improve.


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