(Reuters) – Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga claimed his first title since 2015 as he recovered to beat David Goffin 4-6 6-4 6-1 in the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament final in Rotterdam on Sunday.
Sixth seed Tsonga, 31, fell behind but after levelling the match he swept through the decider against the Belgian.
The 26-year-old Goffin, without a title since 2014, suffered disappointment for the second week running after losing in the final at the Sofia Open to Grigor Dimitrov.
Tsonga once again served well, banging down 10 aces as his power game eventually overwhelmed third-seeded Goffin.
“I’m really happy. These titles come at the right moments. The last couple of months I put in a lot of effort to come back to this level,” said Tsonga, who struggled with injuries last season.
“It’s a huge reward for me and it gives me new expectations for the rest of the year.”
Tennis – ABN AMRO tournament – Men’s Singles’ final – Ahoy Stadion, Rotterdam – 19/02/17 Winner Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France (L) and runner-up David Goffin of Belgium pose with their trophies. REUTERS/Michael KoorenGoffin adopted a brave face, saying: “It was a great week in the end. There was a lot of emotion this week and I won a lot of matches.
“I was a bit tired today. I started the final really well, but in the end Jo played better than me, especially in the third set.
“Of course I’m disappointed, but I played some good tennis and will be in the top 10 (when the rankings are announced) on Monday.”
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Ken Ferris and Ian Chadband)
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