Djere beats teenager Auger-Aliassime for maiden title in Rio

It was a dream week for Laslo Djere in Rio after he beat 18-year-old Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime to win the title.

Published : Feb 25, 2019 11:59 IST

Rio Open champion Laslo Djere
Rio Open champion Laslo Djere
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Rio Open champion Laslo Djere

Laslo Djere claimed his maiden ATP title and denied teenager Felix Auger-Aliassime a record-breaking Rio Open triumph with a straight-sets victory on Sunday.

Auger-Aliassime was bidding to become the youngest ATP 500 champion at the age of 18 but fell to a 6-3 7-5 defeat in a nervy decider.

Serbian Djere will move into the top 40 on Monday after breaking six times in a battle between two first-time ATP Tour finalists to get the job done in straight sets.

Djere struggled with his first serve but the 23-year-old – who did not have to play at the semi-final stage as Aljaz Bedene pulled out due to injury – won four of the first five games to leave Auger-Aliassime playing catch up.

The Canadian youngster broke for a second time to make it 4-2, but Djere was not to be denied the opening set.

Auger-Aliassime won the first two games of the second, but Djere was back on serve at 3-3 and broke again to seal victory when his opponent thudded a forehand into the net.

Djere said: "It's been the week of my dreams. So many things have been achieved here. I'm really happy, excited and emotional now.

"I'm happy I could push through this match because it was very tough mentally and physically."

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