Escobar/Nedovyesov clinch Estoril crown, Purcell/Thompson triumph in Houston

Gonzalo Escobar and Aleksandr Nedovyesov prevailed in a match of two distinct halves on Sunday to claim the trophy at the Millennium Estoril Open.

The Ecuadorian-Kazakhstani duo prevailed 7-5, 6-2 against Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul at the clay-court ATP 250 in Portugal. They crucially clinched an opening set featuring 20 break points and five breaks of serve before accelerating through the second for their third ATP Tour crown as a team.

“To be play against those guys, it is always a battle, so we needed to be focused all the way through the match,” said Nedovyesov. “The first set was tricky, break points here and there, and we knew we were going to be tested all the way.

“We just needed to stay focused and stay together. Even though we were 5-1 up in the second, we lost a bit of concentration there, but we managed to finish it up on a good note.”

With their one-hour, 41-minute triumph, Escobar and Nedovyesov levelled their Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Doumbia and Reboul at 1-1. The pair is now 11-6 in 2024, having also reached a championship match in February in Los Cabos.

“It’s definitely special,” said Escobar, who is now a six-time ATP Tour champion, of the Estoril win. “It’s one of my favourite places and my last tournament before becoming a father, so it’s definitely special. We are getting better as a team and that’s the most important thing.”

Heliovaara/Patten clinch Marrakech title on team debut
Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten did not have to wait long for their new partnership to bring success on the ATP Tour.

The Finnish-British duo downed Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler 3-6, 6-4, 10-4 on Saturday to win the Grand Prix Hassan II in their first tournament together. The fourth seeds won six of the final seven points of the match to clinch an 88-minute victory at the clay-court ATP 250 in Marrakech.

Photo Credit: Grand Prix Hassan II

Heliovaara and Patten had not dropped a set en route to the championship match but were forced to rally from behind against the second-seeded Erler and Miedler. The pair saved four of five break points they faced in their comeback win, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

It was a fifth ATP Tour crown for the 34-year-old Heliovaara, who competed at the 2022 Nitto ATP Finals alongside Lloyd Glasspool. Meanwhile it was a maiden tour-level title for Patten, whose only previous ATP Tour championship match appearance came alongside Julian Cash in Houston in 2023.

Aussies Purcell/Thompson claim Houston crown
Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson won their fourth tour-level title as a pair on Saturday at the Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Clay Court Championship. The fourth-seeded Aussies beat William Blumberg and John Peers 7-5, 6-1, securing the trophy with their lone straight-sets win of the week.

Photo credit: Wickerham/US Clay

With three titles together in 2024, Purcell/Thompson are now level with Wesley Koolhof and Nikola Mektic for most on the season. Their latest run lifted them three places to ninth in the PIF ATP Doubles Teams Rankings.

Purcell is now a seven-time tour-level doubles champ, with all of those triumphs coming alongside a fellow Aussie. The Houston title is Thompson's fifth, all of which have come at the ATP 250 level.