Valentin Vacherot completed his astounding run at the Rolex Shanghai Masters on Sunday, defeating cousin Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 to win his first ATP Tour title and become the lowest-ranked champion of an ATP Masters 1000 event.
“It is unreal what just happened. I have no idea what is happening right now. I am not even dreaming. It is just crazy,” Vacherot said. “I am just so happy with my performances the past two weeks. I just want to thank everyone who has helped with my career since the beginning. There has to be one loser but I think there is two winners today, one family that won. And I think for the sport of tennis, the story is unreal.”
Vacherot, ranked No. 204 in the world, also became the first player from Monaco to win on the ATP Tour.
He entered the tournament with just one ATP Tour match win, which came in the first round in Monte Carlo. Most of his appearances this year have come in events on the Challenger Tour.
Playing before a packed crowd on Sunday, the 30-year-old Rinderknech got off to the early lead against his younger cousin. Ranked No. 54, Rinderknech used 12 winners, just two unforced errors and one service break to take the first set.
But the script flipped. In the final two sets, Rinderknech struck a combined one winner and nine unforced errors, compared to five and four, respectively for Vacherot. He also was forced to scramble around the court to save 11 of 14 break points, and the heat and the humidity that impacted players throughout the tournament seemed to affect Rinderknech.
Rinderknech hit 11 aces in his first Masters 1000 final. Before this event in China, he had never advanced past the third round at a Masters 1000.
“I sweated everything I had, I gave it all, and that’s all that matters, and I really enjoyed my time on the court,” the Frenchman said.
Vacherot, 26, said losing the first set forced him to up his level of play. Six times in Shanghai he found himself a set down, including in qualifying.
“I feel when I am down, I have no choice and need to bring my A-game,” Vacherot said. “In the first set I didn’t do that and he was playing better than me. I took my first chance to break in the second set and from that the crowd got more involved and we put on more of a show in the second part of the match.”
After qualifiers, Vacherot defeated Laslo Djere, Alexander Bublik, Tomas Machac, Tallon Griekspoor, Holger Rune and four-time Shanghai champion Novak Djokovic to advance to the final.
On Sunday, he faced a more familiar foe. Not only are they related, but they played one season together in college at Texas A&M.
“I was just trying to beat the guy on the other side of the net,” Vacherot said. “[I tried] to put on the side that it is my cousin and the guy I have been training with and growing up with. It was very tough and he did a better job than me in the first set, coping with the pressure. But I just found a way to turn it around.”
With the victory, Vacherot will rise to No. 40 in the rankings and will be in the Top 100 for the first time. He became the fifth man to win his first tour title at the 1000 level and the third qualifier to win a Masters 1000 championship, joining Roberto Carretero (Hamburg 1996) and Albert Portas (Hamburg 2001).
Rinderknech will rise to a career-high No. 28 when the new rankings are issued Monday.
–Field Level Media
