By Munyaradzi Madzokere
Top Zimbabwe tennis player Benjamin Lock missed out on what could have been his first ITF singles title since 2019 after he lost in straight sets to German Mats Rosenkranz in the final in Italy yesterday.
Rosenkranz needed tie breaks to win both sets 7-6 7-6 and lift the M15 Gaiba 2021 Men singles final in a marathon tie that lasted 2 hours 32 minutes.
It was by no means a stroll in the park for Rosenkranz who had to dig deep to take the first set tie break 13-11 before winning the second one 7-5.
But Lock may have been feeling the effects of his semifinal victory over Antoine Bellier from Switzerland which lasted 2 hours 12 minutes, going into a third set while two of them needed tie breaks.
The Zimbabwe number one player won the match 7-6 2-6 7-6 to book a final date with the 22-year-old German.
Lock who was the fifth seed in Italy last won a singles title on the ITF circuit in Johannesburg on September 2019 when he beat Frechman Terence Atmane 6-4 6-4.
It has not been an easy year for Lock even in his favoured doubles format where he has won only one title alongside Tunisian Aziz Dougaz, in Tunisia at the beginning of April.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
Lock has won a total of 27 doubles titles in his career, one of them on the ATP Tour and 13 of them alongside his young brother Courtney Lock who has just recovered from a double hip surgery he underwent late last year.
In singles, Lock has won seven titles.
Late yesterday Lock was scheduled to play a qualification semi-final match for the Forli Challenger event against Italian Francesco Forti
- Follow Munyaradzi on Twitter @munyamadzokere
