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No player finished the 2018 ATP Tour season on a higher note than Alexander Zverev. The 21-year-old became the youngest player to win the Nitto ATP Finals since Novak Djokovic in 2008. Zverev was also the first German to triumph at the season finale since Boris Becker in 1995.

But Zverev fell short of earning his best performance at a Grand Slam last month in Melbourne, losing to former World No. 3 Milos Raonic in straight sets in the fourth round of the Australian Open. In his first tournament since, the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC, the second seed is eager to return to winning ways. Zverev is pursuing his 11th ATP Tour title.

“Every player has played more than me, basically. But I’m looking forward to it,” said Zverev, who faces qualifier Alexei Popyrin in the first round. “I’m looking forward to really getting going now because it’s a busy schedule with the Masters [1000] series coming up [in Indian Wells and Miami] and also on clay I have a very busy schedule,” Zverev said. “It’s very exciting.”

Two days before the Australian Open, Zverev turned his ankle during practice. While the World No. 3 says he has not fully recovered, and he still tapes the ankle, the German is happy that he gave it time to heal to allow himself the best chance to recover.

“I had to take Rotterdam off, unfortunately, and I was with a doctor that I’ve seen for a long time already,” Zverev said. “I hope it’s going to get better, and I hope I’ll be pain-free very shortly.”

It certainly doesn’t hurt that Zverev is returning to action in Acapulco, where he is staying in a house that is 20 metres from the beach. While Zverev is fully focused on the tennis, the setting is an added bonus.

“I go every morning to the beach. I enjoy the water a lot. I think this place is in a way a holiday,” Zverev said. “We do obviously practice a lot. I’ve been practising four hours a day. But in a way this is still holidays for us and we enjoy being here.”

Did You Know?
Zverev competed in Acapulco for the first time last season. The German lost to Juan Martin del Potro in the semi-finals.

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Radu Albot was on the verge of defeat on Sunday in his first ATP Tour final. But the Moldovan saved three championship points against Daniel Evans to triumph at the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com.

At the beginning of the year, the 29-year-old aimed to break into the Top 50 of the ATP Rankings, and on Monday he will climb to a career-high No. 52. Albot also made Moldovan history, becoming the first player from his country to lift an ATP Tour title. Albot spoke to ATPTour.com after the match to reflect on his maiden moment.

First-Time Winners In 2019

Player
Age Tournament
Alex de Minaur 19  Sydney  Tennys Sandgren 27  Auckland  Juan Ignacio Londero 25  Cordoba  Reilly Opelka 
21
New York Laslo Djere 
23
Rio de Janeiro Radu Albot
29
Delray Beach

How does it feel to be holding your first ATP Tour trophy?
It feels unbelievable. You work so much, you work your whole life, your whole career and at the end you win a tournament. This is just a great feeling. I think it’s difficult to put into words.

Was this a goal you had as a junior growing up, working your way up to when you started as a professional? Did you ever think you’d be here one day at 29 holding a trophy?
In my career I’ve had a lot of goals. My first goal was to break the Top 500 of the ATP Rankings, then it was 300, then 150, then the Top 100. Now I had the goal of breaking the Top 50, and I am close to it with this win. I'm closer to the goal than ever.

If you ask me if I was thinking of holding a trophy as a kid, not really. It’s a tough sport. Everybody is playing unbelievable tennis nowadays. You play a guy who is No. 200 and you can lose. You play a guy who is No. 400, you can lose. It’s just so physical and so mental here. I think it’s a surprise for me as well that I won, but I’ll take it. I played great tennis the whole week.

It was your first ATP Tour final against someone who had been in just one final before. Can you talk about that?
I was trying not to think much about it because the thoughts might be there too much in your head. You just try to focus on your game and your gameplan, what you’re doing good and your opponent is doing good so you can adjust. You just make it as simple as possible, like another match. You don’t want to be struggling thinking about how it’s a final. You don’t need to get tight.

You’re the first player from Moldova to win an ATP Tour title and you had the flag after the match. What does that mean?
This means a lot, being the first guy who has ever won an ATP Touyr title from Moldova. It’s a big thing. Nobody is playing professional tennis from my country at the moment. Nobody has an ATP Ranking point.

It’s a tough sport, it’s tough to break through. I say all the time the same thing, I hope that the kids will watch, the kids will get inspired, the kids will practise, get better, come out here and hopefully be better than me. I really hope there will be another player from Moldova who will get another title or go higher in the ATP Rankings than Radu Albot.

You came back from a set down in your last three matches. Talk about your fight all week.
I always try to fight until the last point. Even today, I was three match points down, but I was fighting. I was just being there on the court. Every time I lose a set, I just continue to play. It’s just half of a match. You don’t need to drop your game or let the other set get away from you. That’s what I was focusing on in the last three matches, and luckily it worked out pretty well.

What was it like in the third set when you had the break at the rain delay and then led 4-2, a chance for 5-2 and he broke you back?
This is the sport. This is tennis. It happens a lot. You’re winning, you’re leading and suddenly 10 minutes later you’re down and you’re defending everywhere in the court and saving match points. In the rain delay we did not talk much about tactics. I talked to my coach and we just kept doing what I was doing before, no new tactics. The first game it worked, it worked good later on but I just didn’t convert the second break to go 5-2 up and I think that would have been the key and it would’ve been an easier end to the match for me.

What did you learn during the week in putting together five wins at an ATP Tour event for the first time?
It’s a very good question. I honestly don’t know the answer. It’s difficult to win five matches in a row on the ATP Challenger Tour or in a Futures. To win five in a row at an ATP Tour event against great players, Top 100 players, Top 30 players, this is a different level. I was just 5-0 this week and we keep going.

You’re now just outside the Top 50 only two months into the season, and that was your goal before the year. Do you have any new goals?
It’s a little bit too quick to think about it. I just finished my match. Of course, even if you’re No. 1 in the world, you have different goals. You will not be like, ‘Okay, I’m done. I’m going to put my racquet into the bag and quit.’ Everybody has goals. I am close to No. 50, and for sure there will be different goals I want to achieve in the future.

How about bringing Magnus Tideman onto your team as a coach? How has he helped your game?
We met in December. We hadn’t talked to each other ever. We started to work at the Australian Open. This was the only tournament where I hadn't won a match at a Grand Slam, so this year I won my first Australian Open match.

It’s just a lot of belief, a lot of little things that maybe you don’t pay attention to, but it works. Of course I’ve been working hard even before Magnus. It’s not like something crazy happened, it’s just good timing and good vibes. The connection between Magnus and I has worked pretty well, and I love it.

Is there anyone who you’d like to acknowledge who has helped you get to where you are today?
I would like to say a lot of thanks, first of all, to my parents. Even in the middle of the night they are watching my matches, it doesn’t matter where I play. In Australia, in the United States, any state in the United States, they are watching all my matches. Even though I think they’re awake, I didn’t take my phone out yet to check. For sure, they called me and they texted me.

I’d like to say thanks a lot to the president of the Moldovan Tennis Federation… he helped me a little bit financially when I had trouble in my career. Hopefully he will keep helping me in the future. I also want to say thanks to my ex-coach, who helped me a lot, Leon Smith. He’s helping Gael Monfils now. I want to thank my girlfriend, who is a big, big, big part of the team. She’s not just like a girlfriend. Her name is Doina Chiorescu.

For people who are not familiar with Moldova, tell them what they should know about your country.
Moldova is situated between Romania and Ukraine in Europe. It’s a pretty small country with a population of four million people. The capital is Chisinau, this is where I live, and there is only a population of one million.

My country is very, very famous for cellars under the ground. There are hundreds of kilometres and you cannot walk there. You have to take a car and drive the car underground to see the wine cellars. This is the most famous thing we have in Moldova. A lot of tourists go there and a lot of wine experts. There are a lot of hard-working people and unfortunately they're not really paid well at home.

Laslo Djere was just looking for match wins coming into the Rio Open presented by Claro, but walked away with his first ATP Tour title. The 23-year-old Serbian defeated #NextGenATP Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime to win the ATP 500 event in Rio de Janeiro.

Djere was competing in his first ATP Tour final after reaching three other semi-finals on clay. The milestone moment puts him at a career-high ATP Ranking of No. 37.

The Serbian is also the fifth first-time champion on the ATP Tour in 2019, just eight weeks into the season.

First-Time Winners In 2019

Player
Age Tournament
Alex de Minaur 19  Sydney  Tennys Sandgren 27  Auckland  Juan Ignacio Londero 25  Cordoba  Reilly Opelka 
21
New York Laslo Djere 
23
Rio de Janeiro Radu Albot
29
Delray Beach

Afterwards, Djere spoke to ATPTour.com:

How does it feel to win your first ATP Tour title?
I’m really happy about this title, especially winning in my first final at the 500-level. It's an exceptional day for me in my career and my life. I was a little bit nervous for the final because I knew I was facing a tough opponent. I started to move and it got easier, but it was still very tough mentally and physically.

You didn’t have a ton of match wins to start the season. How do you then find yourself with an ATP 500 title this week?
I’ve never started the season well. The past two years I was losing eight or nine matches in a row. I wasn’t so nervous until Rio because it was only mid-February, but I knew a win would mean a lot. I was a bit disappointed when I saw the draw and saw I was facing Dominic Thiem in the first round, but I believed I could win.

What did it mean to beat a former champion in Thiem and get your first Top 10 win? Was that a key to your week?
Sometimes a player beats a tough opponent and flies through the week, which is what happened to me. Moments like beating a Top 10 player are the reason I dedicated my whole life to this sport. It means a lot and I’m sure it gave me some experience.

As fellow Serbians on the ATP Tour, do you have a relationship with Novak Djokovic? Has he given you any advice or encouragement?
We know each other and always say a few words when we see each other at tournaments. He obviously plays the biggest tournaments and that wasn’t always the case in my career, so I haven’t had a chance to see him as much. He sent me a message when I reached the Top 100 [of the ATP Rankings] and called me to play doubles with him at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, when I was nowhere close to the Top 100. He’s a great guy and an inspiration to all of us.

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Your parents played a big part in your comments yesterday and then today in the trophy ceremony. What would they think of this result?
They would be really happy. I learned at a young age that life isn’t fair, but it’s unfortunate that they can’t enjoy this success because they dedicated their lives to me and the sport. I hope they see this and that they’re really proud of me.

How will you celebrate tonight?
I didn’t make a plan for that yet. I’ll definitely celebrate with my coach since he’s here…maybe switch from the pasta, rice and chicken I’ve had for the past 10 days. I think maybe a glass of wine and then I’ll really celebrate when I get back to Serbia with my friends and family.

Huge congratulations to Laslo for his amazing win at @RioOpenOficial & his maiden @ATP_Tour trophy. You have demonstrated a great deal of resilience & fighting spirit in difficult times. Thank you for your honesty & transparency in sharing your emotions about your parents

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Years ago, a Moldovan man was watching his television, clicking through the channels when he saw something he had never seen before: tennis. The man liked the sport, and decided his son should try it. That boy was Radu Albot.

“When I started playing tennis, I was not following it on TV. It was just fun for me, running after balls, running around the court, playing games besides tennis,” Albot said. “Just more like a fun activity, it wasn’t like a serious sport.”

The 29-year-old says that there are not many public courts in Moldova. Mostly, there are courts available at private clubs. The country is small, with just more than 3.5 million residents.

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“There are enough courts to practise and enough to start playing there,” Albot said.

And that’s all the right-hander needed. Albot has set the bar for Moldovan tennis, and he hopes to inspire children in his country to take up the sport. Albot became the first player from his country to crack the Top 100 on 27 July 2015. Since 1984 Wimbledon, only two other Moldovans had reached the Top 500, so, as a kid, Albot found players from other countries to idolise.

“I was mostly following the Russian players like Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Marat Safin and I liked very much Roger Federer and David Ferrer,” Albot said. “I thought I was playing a little bit like David with my game style. I really admired him. When I got on the Tour, I tried to organise practice with him as much as I could.

“The first time you have a little bit of emotions, you’re excited to practise and to give your best in a practice. It’s a little bit like a dream. You see the guy for years on TV and suddenly you’re practising with him on the other side of the court, so that’s really cool and you could put it as an achievement in your career.”

Albot stands only 5’9”, but he makes up for his lack of height with his footwork and grit on the court, battling to make his opponents hit as many balls as possible.

“I’m an overall player, I’m fighting until the end, every point. Every time I play the ball in the court, so it’s really difficult to take me off the court,” Albot said. “For sure they think I’m a tough opponent to play.”

At the New York Open, Albot defeated two of the tallest players in the sport in two consecutive years. On Wednesday, he defeated 6’11” Ivo Karlovic, withstanding a barrage of 37 aces to reach the second round. Last season, Albot ousted 6’10” John Isner, this year's top seed.

"He competes very well. I think he has to, and his match today against Ivo was very indicative of that. He got aced almost 40 times, but he stayed the course and was able to win that match," Isner said. "He's a very little guy... He competes very well and he's actually a pretty aggressive player for being someone who's smaller in stature.

"I think a surface like this actually suits him pretty well because he likes to play aggressively and on his front foot. He takes the ball early. I know he plays Sam [Querrey] tomorrow, so I think that will be a pretty good match because Radu is very capable and I have a lot of respect for him."

Albot made his biggest breakthrough yet at the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com, coming from a set down in his final three matches to become the first Moldovan to lift an ATP Tour title. It took a while for Albot to get to this level, as he was 25 when he made the Top 100 for the first time. But he was motivated to play in the main draw of more Grand Slam and ATP Tour events. Now that he’s there, Moldova’s tennis trailblazer will look to continue pushing forward.

“Now that I’m at my career-high, I want to be higher,” Albot said. “I had a goal for a couple of years now to break the Top 50 and I haven’t achieved it yet, but I really hope that in the future or in 2019 this will happen.”

Editor's Note: This story was originally published on 13 February, and updated to reflect that Albot won his first ATP Tour title in Delray Beach.

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Rain nor the brink of defeat could stop Radu Albot from making history on Sunday at the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com. The 29-year-old became the first Moldovan to win an ATP Tour title, saving three championship points and beating qualifier Daniel Evans 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(7).

Albot had never reached a tour-level final before this tournament. And in his two previous ATP Tour semi-finals, the Moldovan won just four games each time. But despite a 56-minute rain delay thwarting Albot’s momentum after he broke for a 2-1 lead in the third set, the World No. 82 held his nerve to lift his first trophy after a thrilling two hours and 51 minutes.

"It feels unbelievable. You work so much. You work your whole life, your whole career, and at the end you win a tournament," Albot said. "This is just a great feeling. I think it's difficult to put into words."

Since records have been kept, only one other player from Moldova cracked the Top 200 of the ATP Rankings. That was Roman Borvanov (career-high No. 200), who supported Albot in Delray Beach this week. Albot has set virtually every record for Moldovan tennis, adding a crown jewel with his first title. He is projected to climb to a career-high on the fringe of the Top 50 on Monday.

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Albot’s nickname is ‘The Machine’, and he certainly looked the part on Sunday. Evans started well early, using his knifing backhand slice to keep the Moldovan from gaining much rhythm. But Albot settled down in the second set and stood his ground on the baseline, using his superior depth and weight of ball to push Evans back.

Albot, who also reached the doubles semi-finals this week with Yoshihito Nishioka, showed his comfort at net by taking any ball that Evans left short, hitting a strong approach shot and finishing off the point in the forecourt. But everything changed at 2-1, 15/0 in the decider. Rain began to fall, and play was suspended for nearly an hour.

When the competitors returned to the court in Delray Beach, Evans had some extra pep in his step. The passing shots that Albot was able to put away before the delay suddenly had extra zing in them, and Evans broke back for 3-4 by changing his pattern of play. For nearly the entire match, the Brit sliced his backhands, but Evans hit over his one-handed backhand on an approach shot, forcing a mishit error from Albot. From there, Evans was the one putting pressure on the Moldovan, getting to 15/30 on Albot's serve in the 29-year-old's next two service games.

Evans appeared destined to complete the comeback when he took a 6/4 lead in the final-set tie-break. But Evans made errors on all three of his chances, including a backhand volley from just a couple feet inside the baseline at 7/6 that sailed mere inches long. Unbefitting of the quality of the match, Evans double-faulted when he faced his first match point, allowing Albot to lift the trophy.

"He hit a good volley [on his third match point]. I have to give him credit. It's easy to say I didn't take the match points but I thought he played great in the moments he needed to play great," Evans said. "I was 2-4 down and staring down the barrel to be honest. I gave it a good go and it wasn't good enough."

Credit belongs to the Moldovan for battling from a set down for the third consecutive match. While players showed they could sometimes hit through Albot, he always stayed the course and raised his level whenever his opponents showed any sign of weakness. For his efforts, Albot gains 250 ATP Ranking points and $97,490 in prize money. The last player to win the first ATP Tour trophy for his country was Stefanos Tsitsipas, this week's Marseille champion, in Stockholm last year.

"It was not in the plan, I have to say, losing the first set and then coming back. But it worked out pretty good this week. When you lose a set, it's just half a match," Albot said. "If you want to win the match you need to win two sets. I still had chances, I got chances and I used them."

Evans, who was trying to become the first qualifier to lift the trophy in Delray Beach since Ernests Gulbis in 2013, and the first Brit to triumph in the tournament’s 27-year history, leaves with 150 points and $52,495 in prize money.

"He played some good tennis right at the end when he needed it. It's a little unlucky to lose 7-6 in the third with big chances, obviously three match points. But I don't think I did much wrong. I missed two forehands, but not by a lot."

Did You Know?
This was the first third-set tie-break in the Delray Beach final since Tommy Haas beat Xavier Malisse in 2006.

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Laslo Djere's week at the Rio Open presented by Claro went from great on Tuesday to career-changing on Sunday. The 23-year-old Serbian won his maiden ATP Tour title in Brazil, beating 18-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada 6-3, 7-5 to take the ATP 500 crown.

Djere nor Auger-Aliassime had competed in a tour-level final before, but in a nervy title match from both sides, the 23-year-old was the calmer and more free-swinging of the two. Djere broke the #NextGenATP Canadian six times, and although he was far from perfect with his serve, when he needed to, he found a way out of trouble.

Djere, No. 90 in the ATP Rankings, is projected to rise to No. 37 on Monday when the new ATP Rankings are released. He dedicated the title to his late parents. His mother passed away seven years ago, Djere said, and his father died just two months ago.

“I don’t know many tennis players who went through these things. I want to be that guy who inspires others and shows that you can still be successful,” Djere said.

“It’s been the week of my dreams. So many things have been achieved here. I’m really happy, excited and emotional now. I’m happy I could push through this match because it was very tough mentally and physically.”

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The Serbian's week started with a straight-sets win against top seed and 2017 champion Dominic Thiem for his first Top 10 victory. His coach, upon seeing Thiem as his charge's first-round opponent, was initially frustrated.

"My coach was disappointed because he felt I was playing so good in the practises and then I got the top seed in the first round. But I felt that I should look at it in a positive way and that maybe this was a good moment to play the top seed,” Djere said.

From there, the Serbian didn't drop a set against Japan's Taro Daniel and #NextGenATP Norwegian Casper Ruud, and a semi-final walkover (Bedene) left him fresh for the final against Auger-Aliassime, who was after ATP Tour history.

Not since Kei Nishikori (18 years, 50 days) at the 2008 Delray Beach Open had a player younger than Auger-Aliassime, who will turn 19 in August, won a tour-level title. The Canadian became the youngest player to reach an ATP 500 title match since the tournament tier was established in 2009.

But a shaky start put Auger-Aliassime behind from the beginning, as the final opened with three consecutive service breaks. Djere, however, calmed himself down, holding and then breaking Auger-Aliassime when the Canadian donated his second double fault of the game to fall behind 1-4. Auger-Aliassime, for the match, hit more than twice as many unforced errors as winners, 47 to 20, including nine double faults.

“It was my serve that fell apart today, but it could have been my backhand or my forehand,” Auger-Aliassime said. “It’s frustrating because I could have done better today, but it shows that I have to mature as a player and a person to give myself chances to win titles. There’s nothing wrong with that. It just proves I have to keep working and get better.”

Djere, meanwhile, was hitting tomahawk forehand return winners and opening up the court with his two-handed backhand, surprising Auger-Aliassime with down-the-line winners.

The Canadian shifted the momentum by breaking to start the second set and playing his way into more rallies. But Djere routinely made him work for one more shot.

The Serbian broke back in the sixth game when Auger-Aliassime let slip a 40/15 lead. Serving to stay in the match in the 12th game, Auger-Aliassime saved four championship points before dumping a forehand into the net.

“My expectations weren’t to win this. But throughout the week, I felt that I was playing really good here," Djere said.

He will receive 500 ATP Rankings points and $369,000 in prize money. Auger-Aliassime will receive 300 ATP Rankings points and $185,325 in prize money.

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