Richard Gasquet conquers Auckland’s ATP 250 tournament after beating Britain’s Cameron Norrie (4-6, 6-4, 6-4) in a tight final. The Frenchman adds title No. 16 on the ATP circuit.
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A more than interesting final for this ATP Kiwi officially Auckland ASB Classic between two great players such as Richard Gasquet y Cameron Norrie. The Frenchman made a very good comeback against Goffin in the quarter-finals and was then rested by Lestienne’s defeat before their duel in the semi-finals. For Cameron Norrie, this was a very special tournament for him as Auckland was the city where he grew up and where his parents still live. Britti himself represented New Zealand at the beginning of his career. This year Cam was undefeated so far.
Gasquet starts the year with the title
A better start to the game for Norrie, who used his first opportunity to take the break to his advantage and took the lead 3-1. The British left-hander was on his way to take the first set without any major blows, but in the closing moments Gasquet got the break back to get back into the fight. Despite this, Cameron made another break to close out the first set 6-4.
In a high-profile match, Richard wanted to keep fighting and now he managed to lead the break to 3-2 as he dreamed of reversing history. In front of the stadium that supported his almost local Norrieta, the Frenchman didn’t slow down as he held on in the second set 6-4.
Norrie stormed to the final set and hit a break in the second game to take a 3-0 lead. The gap was able to grow quickly, and the French even had to save four break points to avoid 0-4 and a reduction on this scoreboard. It would undoubtedly be a game breaker, not for the game, but for the mental. Richard went from almost defeated to taking advantage of his rival’s slight relaxation to change the course of the match. Gasquet would make two breaks in a row to win the third 6-4.
