Diallo Captures Second ATP Challenger Title in Bratislava

Gabriel Diallo capped off a dream day for Canadian tennis with his second ATP Challenger Tour title in Bratislava on Sunday.

He was the third Canadian of the day to lift a trophy after Leylah Annie Fernandez and Gabriela Dabrowski were both crowned champions at their respective WTA Tour events.

It was a hard-fought week for Diallo but he saved his best for the final, defeating Belgium’s Joris De Loore in straight sets 6-0, 7-5 for the title. The victory is the 22-year-old’s fourth professional title, his second of the season having won his hometown ITF event in Montreal in March, and his second ATP Challenger title having won the Granby title in 2022.

On his way to the title, Diallo had at least one set go more than 10 games in every match but he was clutch in those big moments, winning every one of those 7-5 and tiebreak sets. His run also included a thrilling three-set win over 2020 US Open champion and top seed Dominic Thiem in the second round.

Diallo got off to a quick start in the final, converting three of six break points to score the bagel in just 29 minutes. The second set was more competitive, but it was still De Loore on the backfoot as the Canadian continually applied pressure to the Belgian’s serve.

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De Loore saved break points at 3-3 and 4-4 as well as a break/match point at 5-5. But finally in the 12^th game, after two more break/match points came and went, Diallo finished the job on his ninth break point of the set and fourth match point.

The Canadian never faced a break point in the final, only dropping 12 total points on serve.

With the win, Diallo will jump 34 spots in the ATP rankings to a new career-high of No. 130.