Arevalo/Middelkoop Capture Winston-Salem Trophy
Marcelo Arevalo and Matwe Middelkoop battled back to defeat Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek 6-7(5), 7-5, 10-6 Friday at the Winston-Salem Open to clinch their first title as a team this season.
Arevelo of El Salvador and Middelkoop of the Netherlands were competing in their maiden final of the year as a team, having reached semi-finals in Marbella in April and Rome in May. The unseeded pair won 84 per cent (46/55) of their first-serve points and saved both breaks point they faced to secure their victory in one hour and 53 minutes.
[FOLLOW ACTION]“It is amazing, I am still processing the match,” Middelkoop said. “It is my 10th title, second title for Arevalo and first as a team. We struggled throughout the whole week, but managed to win the tournament, so it shows how we can bounce back. The future looks very bright.”
Arevelo and Middelkoop, who made their team debut in 2020 at the Rolex Paris Masters, saved three match points in their first-round match and one match point in their quarter-final victory en route to the trophy.
”We trusted each other since the first match,” Arevalo added. “We faced a lot of tough moments, match points down in the opening matches. We complement each other in the important moments. Sometimes Middelkoop is playing better, sometimes I am playing better. We are a tough team.”
It is the second final Middelkoop has competed in this year, after enjoying a run to the championship match in Kitzbühel with Roman Jebavy in July. Arevalo reached the semi-finals in Cincinnati last week with Italy’s Fabio Fognini.
Dodig and Krajicek were teaming for the first time this week. The Croatian-American tandem did not drop a set en route to the championship match, upsetting top seeds Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo in the semi-finals.