ACAPULCO: Nick Kyrgios saved his best performance of a brilliant week for last as the Australian stunned second seed Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-4 to win the Acapulco International in Mexico on Saturday for his fifth career ATP title.

The temperamental Aussie, whose scintillating run to the final included wins over multiple grand slam winners Stan Wawrinka and Rafa Nadal, played free and focused from the outset and frustrated German Zverev with a steady diet of drop shots.

Former world number 13 Kyrgios, who has fallen to 72 in the rankings, converted three of his break point opportunities and sealed the win on his first championship point with a massive serve that was too much for world number three Zverev to handle.

“I just chucked in a lot of drop shots, tried to keep him guessing, that’s all you can do,” said Kyrgios. “He’s super-fit, so he’s going to grind you down so I tried to keep the points short when I could.”

Earlier, China’s Wang Yafan won her first WTA Tour title, beating fifth-seeded Sofia Kenin 2-6, 6-3, 7-5. The 24-year-old Wang, ranked 65th, overcame a 2-0 deficit to win the second set.

Published in Dawn, March 4th, 2019