2020 in Review: Kyle Edmund wins second ATP title in New York

John Isner and Milos Raonic were the top seeds at the third edition of the New York Open, and they both failed to reach at least the quarters! The 8th seed Kyle Edmund survived a stern challenge from Soonwoo Kwon in the quarter-final and played on a higher level against Miomir Kecmanovic to oust the Serb and advance into the final. There, the Briton claimed the second ATP title after Antwerp 2018, defeating the Italian veteran Andreas Seppi 7-5, 6-1 in an hour and 21 minutes. Kyle took the upper hand in the opening set's closing moments and dominated the second to seal the deal in style and lift the second indoor crown. Edmund was the Australian Open semi-finalist and the top-10 contender in early 2019, losing ground after barely staying inside the top-70. Seeking stronger performance in 2020, Kyle secured the title in New York for his only notable result of the season, suffering seven losses in the last ten matches of the year.

Still, there was nothing wrong with Kyle's game against Seppi, dropping eight points in ten service games and never facing a break point, challenging the Italian veteran to repeat the same if he wanted to stay in contention. The Briton had around 25 winners and 15 unforced errors, reducing his opponent to ten direct points and taking 45% of the return points to grab three breaks and move over the top. Andreas was there to fight in the opening ten games before dropping eight of the last nine, unable to follow the rival's pace and failing to celebrate the first title since 2012. Edmund had a massive advantage in the mid-range and most extended rallies, taming his strokes nicely and doing everything right on the court, especially in set number two.

Both players served well in the first 11 games, staying neck and neck and looking good to reach a tie break before Kyle found the return pace in the best moment. The Briton held at 15 in game 11 and landed a backhand down the line winner a few minutes later to grab a break and seal the opener 7-5. With momentum on his side, Kyle secured a break in the second set's second game following Seppi's forehand unforced error and fired an ace in the next one to open a 3-0 gap. Andreas survived numerous break chances in the fourth game, but there was no way back for him when Kyle broke him again to move 5-1 up and serve for the title. Untroubled behind the initial shot, Kyle held at 15 after forcing a forehand mistake from Andreas to seal the deal and celebrate his second ATP crown, the first in 16 months.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3mwd3Y4