Fabio Fognini of Italy won the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, defeating Dusan Lajovic 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 38 minutes.  Following up on his fabulous victory over Rafael Nadal in the semis, Fognini converted four of his five break points against Lajovic to win the title.

Fognini also became the first Italian to win an ATP Masters 1000 title.  He will move to a career high ranking of 12 in the new ATP rankings. Fognini also became the lowest seeded player to win the trophy since Gustavo Keurten in 1999.

“I’m really, really happy. Nothing to say,” Fognini said. “I have to keep calm, maybe take a shower, relax, and think about this because it’s something incredible.”

It wasn’t an easy week for Fognini though.  The 31-year-old recovered from 4-6, 1-4 down in his first-round match against Russian qualifier Andrey Rublev.  He also overcame a 1-6, 0-2 deficit against Borna Coric in the quarter-finals.

But Fognini was impressive in his win over Rafael Nadal in the semi final winning 6-4, 6-2.  Nadal was almost bageled in the second set, a feat that has not happened since 2007.  The 11-time champion struggled throughout the match, leaving the ball short and allowing his opponent to hit winners on the slow surface.

Chile’s Christian Garin captured his first ATP crown with a  gripping 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-3 win over Casper Ruud in the finals of  the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship in Houston

Garin is the first Chilean to win an ATP title since Fernando Gonzalez won the 2009 Vina del Mar championship.

Christian Ruud, Casper Rudd’s father won the Houston title in 1996 and is now coaching his son. Casper Ruud is the first Norwegian player to crack the Top 100 since his father, Christian, did so in the 1990s.

“First, I would like to congratulate Christian and his team for the win,” a gracious Ruud said afterward. “In the end, he stepped up and he was the better player today.

“We are good friends off the court and good competitors on the court so I hope we play each other more times in the future and keep a good relation and good luck for the next tournaments.”