The final of the Ecuador Open Quito is set. Reigning champion Victor Estrella Burgos will take on third seed Thomaz Bellucci in the final. Both were victorious in the semifinals, although they had very different battles to advance.

Belluci Fights Back to Reach Final

Third seed Thomaz Bellucci overcame an early deficit to fight into his seventh career final, by defeating sixth seed Paolo Lorenzi 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 in an hour and 54 minutes on Saturday.

Despite being the underdog, 6th seeded Paolo Lorenzi came into the match with momentum after upsetting top seed Bernard Tomic in the quarterfinals. Bellucci had been forced to fight hard in his quarterfinal victory. It would be Lorenzi riding the momentum early, smoking five aces and breaking his Brazilian opponent twice in the opening set. The Italian would save four of the five break points on his own serve to grab the opening set 6-3.

Thomaz Bellucci (Photo: Ecuador Open Quito)
Thomaz Bellucci (Photo: Ecuador Open Quito)

Bellucci was not discouraged. He stepped up his own game on his serve in the second set, saving all three break points he faced and only losing seven points on serve in all. He also kept the pressure on Lorenzi’s serve, winning 70 percent of the Italian’s second serve points and breaking him twice to force a deciding set. In that decider, Bellucci was utterly dominant on serve, only losing two points in total. One came on off his first serve and one off his second. He only managed to break Lorenzi’s serve once, but with his strong serving, he was able to fire into the final.

Estrella Burgos Set for Title Defense

Fifth seed Victor Estrella Burgos, who has been in strong form once again this year in Quito, will play for the title on Sunday after easily defeating Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-2, 7-6 (5) to advance to his second consecutive final in Ecuador.

Victor Estrella Burgos plays a backhand in his semifinal win. Photo: Ecuador Open Quito
Victor Estrella Burgos plays a backhand in his semifinal win (Photo: Ecuador Open Quito)

Estrella Burgos was strong on serve in the opening set, pounding five aces and winning all eight of his first serve points. However, he was unable to save the lone break point he faced. Ramos-Vinolas took advantage of some second serves on that occasion for a break. Estrella Burgos was unfazed as his return game was on fire too. He responded with three breaks of his own, winning more of the Spaniard’s service game than Ramos-Vinolas himself. The Dominican won 62 percent of his opponent;s second serve points as he cruised through the opponent set.

The second set was a much tighter affair, with both men holding serve consistently. Estrella Burgos had one break point in the set, but could not convert. The reigning champion did not give his opponent any chances, only dropping six points on serve total and not facing a single break point. A tiebreak was required to decide the set. In the end, it was the defending champion claiming the breaker to close out the match in an hour and 15 minutes to reach the final in Quito once again. Overall, Estrella Burgos only lost three points on his first serve in the entire match.

Estrella Burgos seeks just his second career ATP title, while Bellucci will be gunning for number five.

VAVEL Logo
About the author
Pete Borkowski
Tennis has always been my obsession. What better way to channel that obsession than writing about it? After 18 months of blogging with Sportsblog.com as the writer of A Fan Obsesseds blog, all the while completing my Bachelors in history and French, I joined VAVEL so that I can better share my love and knowledge of tennis with the world.