TRARALGON, October 27, 2019
Marc Polmans is the champion of the Latrobe City Traralgon Challenger. The No. 4 seed won the all-Australian singles championship match against No. 6 seed Andrew Harris 7-5, 6-3 on Sunday afternoon.
Earlier in the day, both finalists had to complete their semi-finals, as rain washed out play the previous day. At that stage, Polmans rallied past Hiroki Moriya of Japan 5-7, 6-2, 7-6(4) and Harris also needed to go the distance against Japanese Tatsuma Ito, winning 4-6, 7-6(2), 7-6(7).
“I think we both did well to sneak out those wins and make it an all-Aussie final,” Polmans said, quoted on Tennis Australia’s website.
In the final, Polmans struck nine aces and saved both break points he faced to secure victory in one hour and 36 minutes.
“I knew it was important to get the first set in the final, because we’d both played those long matches in the morning, so maybe fatigue was a little bit on his side after that, but he was playing well and I was definitely up for the battle,” Polmans added.
It’s a third #ATPChallenger title for @marcpolmans!
The 🇦🇺 captures the crown in Traralgon, dropping one set all week to prevail on home soil. pic.twitter.com/8yc5ckwHPK
— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) October 27, 2019
By lifting his second trophy of the season following his triumph at Zhangjiagang in China, the 22-year-old Melbourne resident collected in Victoria $7,200 in prize money as well as 80 ATP Ranking points and stands on the brink of reaching a new career-high ranking inside World No.137. Polmans will next compete in Playford, South Australia to finish his season.
“When you win a tournament you’re in a happy place, but you’ve got to get back to work so I’ll be straight back on it in a few days,” he said.
Top seeds Luke Saville and Max Purcell of Australia continued their impressive form on the ATP Challenger Tour, clinching the doubles title with a 6-7(2), 6-3, 10-4 victory over unseeded duo Brydan Klein of Great Britain and Australian Scott Puodziunas. The encounter lasted one hour and 35 minutes.
