ESTORIL (Portugal), April 21: Roger Federer won his first title of the season on Sunday when he clinched the Estoril Open with a 7-6 (7-5), 1-2 win over Nikolay Davydenko who was forced to retire with a leg injury in the second set.The Swiss, who suffered with glandular fever before January’s Australian Open where he was relieved of his title by Novak Djokovic, broke his duck as he notched a 12th win against no defeats in his career series against the Russian world No 4.

Federer had won the last of his 54 career titles in November at the Masters Cup in Shanghai.

“It’s great to win a title, it’s fantastic,” said Federer who has been working this week with Spanish coach Jose Higueras, a claycourt specialist.

“This will give me great confidence for the rest of the season having won my first clay tournament of the year.”

The victory was his seventh on the surface and was obtained in challenging, blustery conditions.

“These were the most difficult of the week,” said the Swiss holder of 12 Grand Slam titles.

“It was cold as well as windy. This is not the best way to win a match and I’m sorry for Nikolay. But sometimes these things happen.”

Davydenko said he felt a muscle pain in his left leg late in the first set while moving sideways.

After a medical timeout at the end of the set, the problem returned a few games later.

Meanwhile, Russian Maria Kirilenko became the first player in the Estoril Open’s history to win both women’s singles and doubles titles on Sunday when she beat Czech Iveta Benesova 6-4, 6-2.

Kirilenko, who won the doubles with Italian Flavia Pennetta on Saturday, overcame a rain interruption to win her third career singles title to add the clay court event to the ones she won in Beijing in 2005 on hardcourt and Calcutta indoors last season.“I feel great, this has to help my confidence,” said the 20-year-old second seed.

“I’ve only started my clay season, this will help me on the way to Roland Garros. I’ve won nine matches this week.”

The winner was helped by five double-faults from Benesova, ranked exactly 100 places lower than the 32 ranked winner from Moscow.

Benesova saved five of seven break points as Kirilenko beat the Czech for the second time in as many meetings.

SERENA TRIUMPHS

CHARLESTON (South Carolina): Serena Williams recovered from a second-set lapse to win her third WTA title of the year by beating Russian Vera Zvonareva 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the Family Circle Cup final on Sunday.

The fifth-seeded American fought back from an early break down in the third set to wrap up victory in one hour 50 minutes.

Williams, 26, broke the ninth-seeded Russian in the third game of the match on the green clay surface and held serve to take the first set when her opponent netted a forehand.

After surprisingly losing the second set as her frustrations mounted, Williams broke Zvonareva twice in the third set to clinch the 31st WTA title of her career.

“It was definitely an up-and-down final like most of my matches have been this week,” world No 9 Williams said in a courtside television interview. “I hit a lot of errors but I’m glad I was able to come through.”

Williams, who had previously won titles in Bangalore and Miami this season, appeared to have the match firmly in control after claiming the opening set in 39 minutes.

Frustrated by in her inability to convert several break opportunities early in the second set, the muscular American failed to hold serve in the sixth game, double-faulting to trail 2-4.

World No 17 Zvonareva, taking advantage, served out to claim the set and level the match.

Williams was again broken in the third game of the final set but immediately broke back when the 23-year-old Russian hit a forehand wide for 2-2.

Regaining confidence, Williams broke Zvonareva in the eighth game and held serve to win her 19th WTA match this season out of 20.

PUJOL STUNS BLAKE

HOUSTON: Spain’s Marcel Granollers-Pujol rallied from three games down in the final set to upset top seeded American James Blake 6-4, 1-6, 7-5 to claim the US Men’s Clay Court Championship and his first ATP title on Sunday.

The 22-year-old, who came into the event ranked 84th in the world and seeded seventh, had never previously advanced past the quarter-finals of an ATP tournament but he battled back gamely against the world No 8 to seal a deserved victory.

“It’s the best day of my life, I think, and I’m very happy for this,” Granollers-Pujol told reporters

“I’ve played tennis since I was very young and have always dreamed of a day like this,” added the Spainiard, who plunged into the swimming pool at the River Oaks Country Club, the tournament venue, to celebrate his win.

Granollers-Pujol took the first set 6-4 but Blake appeared to find his rhythm after an unexpected 20-minute break, enforced while officials attended to an ill spectator.

The 28-year-old winner of 10 ATP titles overpowered Granollers-Pujol with his serve and powerful forehand to take the second set 6-1.

The American appeared on course for victory after cruising to a 3-0 lead in the final set, but his first serve deserted him while Granollers-Pujol cut out his unforced errors and clawed his way back into the match.

For Blake, the loss was a bitter pill to swallow. “It’s really tough right now, I’m very upset about it, very disappointed,” he said. “Being up three-love, I definitely could have served a little better and I wasn’t attacking as much.”—Agencies