Romanian tennis
player Horia Tecau and Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands on Sunday won the
doubles final of the ATP tournament in Basel, Switzerland, totaling some 2
million euros in prize money. They defeated 7-5, 6-3 the US pair Taylor Fritz /
Reilly Opelka. Seeded fourth, Tecau and Rojer grabbed the win in only 69
minutes. This is their best performance in Basel, where they played the
semi-finals twice, in 2015 and 2016. Also worth noting is that the
Romanian-Dutch pair held serve all throughout the game, saving three break
points. For their win, Tecau and Rojer were awarded a 135-thousand-euro check
and 500 ATP points. In the world doubles standings, they each climbed 8 spots,
now ranking 13 and 14, respectively. Tecau and Rojer have also secured
qualification to the ATP Race to London, now ranking 5th. The 2019
ATP Finals will kick off in London next month, bringing together the top 8
players in the men’s singles and the top men’s doubles pairs.
For his
remarkable performance, we have designated Horia Tecau Athlete of the Week on
RRI.
Horia Tecău was
born in Brasov on January 19, 1985. He has been playing tennis since he was 7.
In 2002, Tecau was a juniors’ men’s doubles champion in Wimbledon, jointly with
Florin Mergea. Horia Tecau turned pro in 2003. Since July 2008, Tecau has been
placed among the world’s top 100 tennis players in the doubles rankings, and
among the world’s top 50, since 2009. Horia Tecau then had a constant upward
trend in the world’s doubles rankings, reaching as far as the 2nd-place,
a position he held in November 2015, when he won the Champions Tournament in
London, jointly with his Dutch teammate, Jean-Julien Rojer. The final played in
Basel was the 58th of his career. He has won 37 finals and lost 21.
(Translated by V. Palcu)