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Thompson lost his only other tour-level singles finals,both on grass at ’s-Hertogenbosch,Netherlands,in 2019 and 2023.
The turning point
Nothing came easy for Thompson in the final against Ruud,who would have returned to the top 10 if he won the Los Cabos final.
He staved off two break points in a seven-minute opening service game,then two more in the fifth game to forge 3-2 ahead,in what seemed an ominous start for him after his marathon effort just to reach the decider.
But everything changed a game later,when the Aussie fighter clobbered an inside-in forehand winner to break Ruud to love against the flow of play.
In fact,Thompson reeled off 13 points in a row from those break points down,but still needed to save two more break-back points – both off Ruud errors – before securing a one-set edge.
Thompson displayed his full arsenal of tricks,dodging trouble repeatedly with his big serve,while frustrating Ruud with a series of slices,gutsy baseline play and sharp volleying from the net.
He brought up his set point with a magnificent forehand winner that he curled around Ruud at the net.
Thompson immediately went a break down in the second set,but won five of six games from 0-2 down to be a game away from victory. He tried desperately to break Ruud and avoid having to serve for the match,but the Norwegian hung on in a gruelling game.
Thompson never came close to clinching the final in the next game,dropping serve to level the contest at five-all. However,he dug deep to reach a tiebreaker before an untimely Ruud double fault paved the way for Thompson’s victory.
Thompson needed just one match point,delivering a searing first serve then thrashing a forehand winner off Ruud’s short return to clinch the title.
Hetold this masthead in an extensive interview ahead of last year’s US Open that the next goal he wanted to tick off was earning a grand slam seeding for the first time – and he has never been closer to that being a reality.
Thompson’s quarter-final run at Delray Beach last week put him inside the world’s top 40 for the first time before he beat local wildcard Ernesto Escobedo,Emilio Nava,Michelsen,Zverev and Ruud en route to the Los Cabos title.
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He has few points to defend between now and the start of Roland-Garros in late May,so he has put himself in an excellent position.
Thompson has suffered six first-round exits from eight trips to the claycourt major and typically avoids the red dirt as much as possible,but a seeding would be hugely beneficial for him if he can maintain that status for Wimbledon.
He is an accomplished grasscourt performer and could do some damage with a friendlier draw. A seeding means he would not have to play a seeded rival until at least the third round.
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