Argentina’s injury-plagued David Nalbandian snapped a 19-month title drought by winning Sunday’s Washington Classic final and likes his chances of adding a deep US Open run to his comeback success.
Nalbandian won his first ATP title since January 2009 at Sydney by beating eighth seed Marcos Baghdatis 6-2, 7-6 for the 281,500-dollar top prize from the 1.4 million-dollar tournament, a US Open tune-up event.
“If I continue playing this good, I have a chance to go very, very far,” Nalbandian said of the year’s last Grand Slam event that starts August 30.
The former world no.3 was sidelined nine months after hip surgery, made a brief return early in 2010, then missed two months with a sore hamstring before coming back in July to help Argentina reach the Davis Cup semi-finals.
At 117th in the world, Nalbandian is the lowest-ranked player to win an ATP title this year, a feat that will lift him back into the top 45.
The 28-year-old South American has missed the past six Grand Slams and had not played an ATP event since April, but captured his 11th career crown and dropped only one set all week.
“I didn’t expect to win the first tournament (where) I came,” Nalbandian said.
“It’s very important. I was working very hard. I was fighting so much. This makes me feel very good, not only (about) the ranking but my game.”
Baghdatis went only 2-of-11 on break-point chances in the second set and managed to win only 4-of-13 points off his second serves in the first.
After trading four service breaks and battling each other in nearly every game of the second set, they fought into the tie-breaker. Nalbandian rolled to a 5-0 lead and went on to win after two hours.
“I didn’t serve well. That was the key,” Baghdatis said.
“I played a little better in the second set. He started well in the tie-breaker and that was it.”
Baghdatis, ranked 25th, failed in a bid for his fifth career ATP title. He will move to 21st after a rankings slide from the top 150 last year with wrist and back injuries.
“I’m positive about the future even though I’m disappointed to lose,” he said.
Nalbandian lost three of four prior direct matches with Baghdatis, including a 2006 Australian Open semi-final and in the third round at Wimbledon in 2007.
Nalbandian extended a run of Argentine champions in the US capital after now-injured 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro won in 2008 and 2009.