Shanghai (China), Oct 12 Valentin Vacherot of Monaco, ranked No. 204 in the world, defeated France's Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 to claim the 2025 Shanghai Masters title on Sunday. The match marked the lowest-ranked ATP Masters 1000 final in history. Despite the unusual rankings, it delivered high-quality tennis and dramatic momentum shifts as Vacherot fought back after dropping the first set.
"I feel that when I am down, I have no choice but to bring my A-game," Vacherot said, reflecting on his record of rallying from behind, reports Xinhua.
"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 point, the crowd got more involved, and we put on a better show in the second part of the match."
"I was just trying to beat the guy on the other side of the net," he added, describing the challenge of facing Rinderknech.
The two players are cousins, connected through their mothers, and grew up playing tennis together in southern France. After sealing the victory, Vacherot wrote on the camera lens: "Grandma and grandpa would be proud."
"I tried to put aside the fact that he's my cousin and the guy I've been training and growing up with. It was very tough, and he did a better job than I did in the first set, coping with the pressure. But I just found a way to turn it around."
"It's unreal what just happened. I have no idea what's going on right now. I'm not even dreaming; it's just crazy. I'm so happy with my performances over the past two weeks. I just want to thank everyone who has helped with my career from the beginning. There has to be one loser, but I think there are two winners today: one family that won, and for the sport of tennis, this story is unreal," Vacherot said.
He thus became the lowest-ranked ATP Masters 1000 champion in history (since 1990). Notably, the Monegasque star notched wins against Laslo Djere, Alexander Bublik, Tomas Machac, and Tallon Griekspoor. He then defeated Holger Rune and Novak Djokovic to reach the final of the tournament, where he took on his cousin Arthur Rinderknech.
--IANS
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