In a final which flattered to deceive after a stunning week of tennis, Roberto Bautista Agut emerged the champion after the young American Jack Sock retired due to the flu which had ravaged him all week. Having defeated the likes of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to reach the final, the Spaniard proved a worthy winner in his 6-1 1-0 victory.
Sock failes to recover as Bautista Agut swarms all over him
Seeded eighth in a strong field which included the likes of the aforementioned Tsonga, John Isner and last year's winner Jiri Vesely, Bautista Agut upset the applecart as he superbly defeated all three on route to his title. Sock meanwhile, had battled past his own illness and number one seeded David Ferrer to reach the final, an achievement he can only be proud of.
In truth the final was a no contest and much of that was down to the conition of Sock rather than the raw ability of both players. Having raced into a 5-0 lead within a mere 17 minutes, an uneasy sense of inevitablity arose over the match and within three games Sock had retired and the title was Bautista Agut's.
The Spaniard spoke of his happiness at his 'amazing week' but was alos quick to offer his best wishes to Sock, commenting on how good a year the American had had.
As they both head to Melbourne in the hopes of a succesful Australian Open, Bautista Agut, the 24th seed, will be looking forward to an opening match against Martin Klizan of Slovakia, and 25th seeded Sock faces his fellow American Taylor Fritz in the opening round.