Yuki Bhambri seems to have found his purple patch. In just the first four months of the year, the 25-year old has finished runner-up at the Chennai Open Challenger in January, scalped two big wins over Nicolas Mahut and Lucas Pouille at Indian Wells in March, and on Sunday, the Delhi-lad bagged his seventh Challenger title.
READ: Yuki defeats Ramkumar to Tapei title
Yuki defeated compatriot Ramkumar Ramanathan 6-3, 6-4 to win the Tapei Challenger, and with it, collected 125 ATP points and $21,600. "It's a great relief to win the title. I finished runner-up twice here and I'm glad to finally get my hands on the title," Yuki told Sportstar.
Despite having beaten Ramkumar in four of their previous five meetings, with the most recent one being a 6-4, 6-2 win in the qualifiers of the Indian Wells, Yuki maintained that he did not have the upper hand going into the summit clash. "There was no upper hand. Playing Ramkumar is always a challenge. He's playing really well and the fact that he is at his career's best ranking is proof," he said.
READ: Yuki: ‘We just need to keep pushing’
Yuki is poised to break into the top-80 of the ATP rankings, which will be released on Monday, making him the first Indian, since Somdev Devvarman, to breach the top-80 mark. The improved ranking will also be a career-high for Yuki, whose previous best was 88.
"My hard work has finally paid off. I feel I have the capability to go higher. I am happy with where I am but I'm hungry for more," he remarked.
Sunday's triumph will come as a huge morale-booster for Yuki, who was forced to miss the Davis Cup tie against China due to an abdominal strain . "I pushed really hard this week. I'm in a good position now and can choose my tournaments. I can enjoy the upcoming events and don't have to chase points," he noted.
"I've been consistent, I've had a few good weeks and want to keep the momentum going," he concluded.
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