BENGALURU/STARNBERG, February 13, 2022

Chun-hsin Tseng of Chinese Taipei emerged as the new champion of the Bengaluru Open ATP Challenger hard-court tournament after he halted the dream run of crowd favourite and qualifier Borna Gojo of Croatia in straight sets 6-4, 7-5 in a pulsating one hour-44 minute singles final held at the KSLTA Stadium on Sunday.

While this was the second ATP Challenger title for the 20-year-old, it was the best performance of his rival, who was seeking his first triumph on the Pro Circuit and had never surpassed the second round in his earlier ATP Challenger stints.

Catch Chun-hsin Tseng of Chinese Taipei clash with Croatian @bornagojo in the mens singles of the Bengaluru Open ATP Challenger on the center court. Watch this space to not miss out on the live action!#menssingles #bengaluruopen #bornagojo #chunhsintseng #menstennis pic.twitter.com/rmlHzcRRXQ

— Bengaluru Tennis Open (@BlrTennisOpen) February 13, 2022

Despite the fact that there was no Indian involved in the final, a sizeable crowd had gathered to witness the title clash. Tseng, who has an impeccable record as a junior finishing as World No.1 in 2018, began on a shaky note, trying to gauge his opponent’s game and more importantly not to lose his serve, although he was on the brink of losing it a couple of times. He achieved the all-important break in the fifth game to end up having the upperhand in the opening set.

The second set was a roller-coaster ride with Tseng, grabbing the first two games with a break in the first. The change of shirt in the second set seemed to have changed his outlook as Gojo played some aggressive tennis coupled with deft cross court drop shots and seemed to run away with the second set leading 5-2. However, the diminutive Taipei player’s never-give-in spirit came to fore as he began his recovery from the eighth game, winning five games in a row. He was also gifted some points by an error-prone Gojo who lost his serve in the ninth game owing to two double faults and once again lost his serve in the 11th game after being two game points up.

The agility and the manner in which Tseng put the ball back into the court was the key factor for the champion.

“It was little bit up and down. It was difficult to adjust initially and control the ball as it was getting dark and fast. I knew he had a good serve but I had to keep making longer rallies. After 2-5 down, I told myself to relax and keep going,” said the champion who pocketed $7,200 in prize money as well as 80 ATP Ranking points while Gojo earned $4,240 and 50 ATP Ranking points.

Tseng captured his maiden Challenger trophy at the Maia Open in Portugal at the end of last season.