Feliciano Lopez won his second-career title. It looked like the Spaniard would have problems at the Johannesburg tournament this week because the altitude and heat troubled him. He persevered and now has his second-career title.

Lopez beat Frenchman Stephane Robert 7-5 6-1 after 73 minutes of play in the singles final today. The first set was close, but the Spaniard was able to seize it by securing a break at the end of it. With the opening set under his belt, Lopez was off to the races by winning five-consecutive games and thus putting the match out of the Frenchman’s reach.

The title is Lopez’s first title in 5 ½ years. His last match came in 2004 in Vienna. The 28 year old is off to a good start this year with a 5-2 record. Last year he was 0-2 at this time. With the tournament win, the world no. 39 should move up a few spots on Monday.


Championship Sunday
Singles Final
3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP) def. 8 Stephane Robert (FRA) 7-5 6-1

Doubles Final
R. Bopanna (IND)/A. Qureshi (PAK) def. K. Beck (SVK)/H. Levy (ISR) 2-6 6-3 10-5

(Image: Etienne Rothbart, The Star)

Feliciano Lopez rallied to upset top-seed Gael Monfils. The Spanish lefty beat the world no. 13 3-6 6-1 7-6(1) after 92 minutes of play.

Monfils started out well in the first set. The Frenchman served 11 of his 19 match aces on the Spaniard in the first set and made 62% of his first serves, but his play dropped dramatically in the second set. Lopez, on the other hand, was consistent for the entire match. The Spaniard was also helped by the Frenchman’s injury, which slowed Monfils down in the second set.

The Frenchman managed to pick up his play in the third set and held his serve for the duration of it. Lopez proved too much and took over in the tiebreak. With today's win, Lopez is in the hunt for his second-career title. His only title came in Vienna in 2004.

The real shocker of the day was David Ferrer’s ouster. The Spaniard is one of the fittest players on tour and is usually so consistent. He usually beats the players he should beat. Today, Stephane Robert, the world no. 100, upset the world no. 18 7-5 6-4 after 96 minutes of play.

The 29-year-old Frenchman seeks his first ATP World title of his career. Robert usually plays on the challenger and futures tours. By making it to the final of an ATP World tournament, the Frenchman is having a dream run this week. He has only played in 2 other ATP World tournaments and 2 grand slams in his entire career. Before he would lose in the first rounds (Houston 2004 and Roland Garros 2004), this year he made it to the second round at Chennai and the Australian Open. His run this week marks his best career performance to date.

Obviously, Lopez and Robert have never played. On paper, Lopez should win the final tomorrow. It shall be seen if the Frenchman can follow up today’s upset.

Singles Semifinals
3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP) def. 1 Gael Monfils (FRA) 3-6 6-1 7-6(1)
8 Stephane Robert (FRA) def. 2 David Ferrer (ESP) 7-5 6-4

Doubles Semifinals
K Beck (SVK) / H Levy (ISR) def. S. Darcis (BEL)/X. Malisse (BEL) 7-5 4-6 10-7

Championship Sunday
Singles Final
3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP) vs. 8 Stephane Robert (FRA)

Doubles Final
K. Beck (SVK)/H. Levy (ISR) vs. R. Bopanna (IND)/A. Qureshi (PAK)

Sunday’s Order of Play

(Image: Reg Caldecott)

In semifinal one, we have second-seed David Ferrer of Spain versus eighth-seed Stephane Robert of France. Ferrer had an easy time with Somdev Devvarman, and Stephane Robert shutdown Jamaican sensation Dustin Brown, who had knocked out fourth-seed Marco Chiudinelli in the first round.

In semifinal two, we have Frenchman Gael Monfils and Spaniard Feliciano Lopez in a marquee matchup -- style versus flash. To get to tomorrow's semifinal, Monfils took out Yen-Hsun Lu, and Feliciano beat fifth-seed Rajeev Ram today. Surprisingly, Monfils and Lopez have never met in ATP competition.

The second semifinal should be a good match. Too bad it cannot be seen live on television in the US. As a consolation, Tennis Channel will show the first semifinal on Monday and the second on Tuesday. Check your local listings.

Friday’s Results
Singles Quarterfinals
1 Gael Monfils (FRA) def. 7 Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) 6-1 6-4
2 David Ferrer (ESP) def. Somdev Devvarman (IND) 6-1 6-3
3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP) def. 5 Rajeev Ram (USA) 7-6(2) 6-3
8 Stephane Robert (FRA) def. D. Brown (JAM) 7-6(5) 6-3

Doubles Semifinals
R. Bopanna (IND)/A. Qureshi (PAK) def. 3 E. Butorac (USA)/R. Ram (USA) 7-6(5)

Saturday's Matches
Singles Semifinals
1 Gael Monfils (FRA) vs. 3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP)
2 David Ferrer (ESP) vs. 8 Stephane Robert (FRA)

Doubles Semifinals
S. Darcis (BEL)/X. Malisse (BEL) vs. K. Beck (SVK)/H. Levy (ISR)

Saturday’s Order of Play

(Image: AP)