Eighteen-year-old Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic downed fourth seed Tim Van Rijthoven of the Netherlands 6-3, 6-3 in the men’s singles final yesterday to capture the title in the $15,000 Bahrain International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Tennis Tour 2019 held at Bahrain Tennis Club hardcourts in Juffair.
The championship battle of this tournament being organised annually by BTC was the first meeting between the two finalists, and it marked a fitting ending to an entire week’s display of top-class tennis action.
The event was a part of the ITF Men’s Calendar, and it offered an attractive prize purse of $15,000.
It was held under the patronage of Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, representative of His Majesty the King for Charity Works and Youth Affairs, chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports and president of the Bahrain Olympic Committee.
The event was a part of the ITF Men’s Calendar, and it offered an attractive prize purse of $15,000.
It was held under the patronage of Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, representative of His Majesty the King for Charity Works and Youth Affairs, chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports and president of the Bahrain Olympic Committee.
The tournament sponsors were Bahrain Duty-Free and E K Kanoo.
“I feel very happy for this win; this is a perfect moment for me as I didn’t expect this result against such a tough opponent,” said Machac, who claimed his first title of 2019 on this year’s ITF men’s calendar.
The 21-year-old Van Rijthoven added: “He was just too good today. You always want to win, but reaching the final of a tournament like this is still a very good result overall.”
Machac and Van Rijthoven were presented their respective trophies in an awarding ceremony held right after their match.
Handing over the glittering silverware were Minister of Youth and Sports Affairs Ayman Tawfiq Almoayyed, His Majesty the King’s Youth and Sports Advisor Saleh Isa bin Hindi, Bahrain Tennis Federation (BTF) Vice-President Shaikh Abdulaziz bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, Bahrain Olympic Committee Secretary General Mohammed Hassan Al Nusuf, and BTC President Khamis Al Muqla.
Also on hand at the awarding were former BTF President Dr Tawfiq Almoayyed, BTC Board Member Dr Faisal Al Mosawi, Bahrain Duty-Free Head of Business Support Sujat Ameen, Ebrahim K Kanoo Senior Manager of Toyota and Lexus Marketing Ayman Shehadeh, and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at the Royal Thai Embassy Thanis Na Song Khla.
Also on hand at the awarding were former BTF President Dr Tawfiq Almoayyed, BTC Board Member Dr Faisal Al Mosawi, Bahrain Duty-Free Head of Business Support Sujat Ameen, Ebrahim K Kanoo Senior Manager of Toyota and Lexus Marketing Ayman Shehadeh, and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at the Royal Thai Embassy Thanis Na Song Khla.
Machac started the match strongly and took a 2-0 lead in the first set. Van Rijthoven answered by taking the next two games and then both players held serve over the next three. Machac then broke his rival for a 5-3 lead and then closed the set out in style with a love game.
In the second set, Machac raced out to a 4-2 lead but the Van Rijthoven got one back to reduce the deficit to a single game. But Machac was in undeniable form, and he finally broke his rival for one last time in the match to secure the championship.
In the second set, Machac raced out to a 4-2 lead but the Van Rijthoven got one back to reduce the deficit to a single game. But Machac was in undeniable form, and he finally broke his rival for one last time in the match to secure the championship.
“I feel I played very well today,” said Machac, who now has four career titles on the ITF World Tennis Tour. “The competition here in Bahrain was just perfect; the level of the players was very high and I like the club very much. I hope to be here again next year and play.”
Van Rijthoven commented: “There was a lot of wind today and I have a very aggressive style of play, so that was kind of a factor. But Tomas played very well and I am still satisfied with second place.”