De Groot wins singles title

Manama : Dutchman Rick De Groot defeated Bahrain national team player Yousef Qaed in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 to clinch the Late Ahmed Al Mahoozi Cup - Masters Singles title on Saturday evening at the Bahrain Tennis Club (BTC) 2017 Ramadan Tournament at its premises in Juffair.

The match started positively for Qaed as he broke his opponent in the opening game of the first set and then held his own serve for an early 2-0 lead.

De Groot levelled the score at 2-2 with his first break in the fourth game, before the next three went with serve, with the Dutchman leading 4-3 and a second break in the eighth game gave the Dutchman a 5-3 lead, then he wrapped up the set on his service game in the next game after 42 minutes of action.

In the second set, De Groot effected a break in the opening game before the next three games went with serve for a 3-1 lead.

De Groot effectively sealed the match and the title with a second break for a 4-1 lead and though the next two games went against serve, De Groot leading 5-2 came from 15-40 down on his own service game to win the set in 39 minutes.

To qualify for the final, De Groot won all three of his Group 1 matches including a 4-6, 6-1, 10-5 victory over Qaed, then winning 6-4 and then leading 5-2 when his opponent Karim Abdul Redha retired in the semi-final, while Qaed won two of his three Group 1 matches, then defeating Frenchman Eric Lavaud 6-4, 4-6, 10-5 in the semi-final.

The final was held under the patronage of Hisham bin Mohammed Al Jowder, Minister of Youth and Sports Affairs and the competition featured eight players split into two groups of four playing three round-robin matches, with the top two in each group advancing to the semi-finals.