“I feel really, really good. Hard work paid off, but I don’t want to stop here, I want to keep going. It feels different than when I won my first title. Back then, it was relief that I had won the title, but now I’ve taken it to the next level,” said Popyrin, who became the first Australian to win a title on clay at an ATP event since Lleyton Hewitt, who won the Houston tournament in 2009. Speaking about the injury, he added, “The first feeling was that I had strained a muscle, and later I felt a cramp in the same spot. I will find out on Monday what it is.”
Popyrin arrived in Umag ranked 90th in the world, and by Monday, his name should be in 57th position, meaning he is expected to be two spots higher than his previous career-high ranking. On Tuesday, he will face his first-round match in Kitzbühel, where he was supposed to play in qualifying but entered the main draw as a “special exception” the moment he reached the semifinals in Umag.
Just like the day before in his semifinal against Italian Arnaldini, Popyrin lost the first set in which he was playing better. He led 5-3, then lost the tie-break, but after that, he dominated in the second set. In the third set, he started with a break, then immediately lost his serve, and when he saved a break point at 2-3, it became clear that he wouldn’t be giving up due to the injury. He recovered, and after 28 European titles and four South American titles, the Australian was next in line for victory. Before this season, no Australian player had advanced beyond the first round in Umag (Simon Youl in 1994 and Christopher O'Connell earlier this year), but now Popyrin has entered the ranks of the winners.
“I won my first tournament here, it was a long time ago, and beautiful memories came back,” he said, becoming emotional during the winner’s speech at the award ceremony. He paused as emotions overcame him, and his eyes welled up. “The fact that I won my first title here and that I had a chance today made this such an emotional moment. It was generally a great final, but in the second set, I kind of ran out of fuel. I had a chance, but I didn’t play the backhand well on a break point for 4-2. It is what it is,” said Wawrinka.
The Swiss was the 2006 Umag champion, and so far, he has won 16 titles, including three Grand Slams. If he had won on Sunday, he would have become the oldest winner of the tournament since Ken Rosewall, who won Hong Kong in 1977 at the age of 43 and five days.
For Popyrin, this was his first ATP tournament appearance in Umag, but not his first visit to Istria or Umag. He played twice at the Smrikva Bowl in Pula, which he says was his first international tournament. Additionally, in 2016, he played in the 32nd edition of the Perina Memorial in Umag and reached the quarterfinals. As a junior, he later achieved excellent results and was ranked second in the world at one point, and in 2017, he won the French Open at Roland Garros.
Popyrin arrived in Umag ranked 90th in the world, and by Monday, his name should be in 57th position, meaning he is expected to be two spots higher than his previous career-high ranking. On Tuesday, he will face his first-round match in Kitzbühel, where he was supposed to play in qualifying but entered the main draw as a “special exception” the moment he reached the semifinals in Umag.
Just like the day before in his semifinal against Italian Arnaldini, Popyrin lost the first set in which he was playing better. He led 5-3, then lost the tie-break, but after that, he dominated in the second set. In the third set, he started with a break, then immediately lost his serve, and when he saved a break point at 2-3, it became clear that he wouldn’t be giving up due to the injury. He recovered, and after 28 European titles and four South American titles, the Australian was next in line for victory. Before this season, no Australian player had advanced beyond the first round in Umag (Simon Youl in 1994 and Christopher O'Connell earlier this year), but now Popyrin has entered the ranks of the winners.
“I won my first tournament here, it was a long time ago, and beautiful memories came back,” he said, becoming emotional during the winner’s speech at the award ceremony. He paused as emotions overcame him, and his eyes welled up. “The fact that I won my first title here and that I had a chance today made this such an emotional moment. It was generally a great final, but in the second set, I kind of ran out of fuel. I had a chance, but I didn’t play the backhand well on a break point for 4-2. It is what it is,” said Wawrinka.
The Swiss was the 2006 Umag champion, and so far, he has won 16 titles, including three Grand Slams. If he had won on Sunday, he would have become the oldest winner of the tournament since Ken Rosewall, who won Hong Kong in 1977 at the age of 43 and five days.
For Popyrin, this was his first ATP tournament appearance in Umag, but not his first visit to Istria or Umag. He played twice at the Smrikva Bowl in Pula, which he says was his first international tournament. Additionally, in 2016, he played in the 32nd edition of the Perina Memorial in Umag and reached the quarterfinals. As a junior, he later achieved excellent results and was ranked second in the world at one point, and in 2017, he won the French Open at Roland Garros.
