【Champion】Shelton Secures Home Victory, Deminar Fulfills Dream in Rotterdam

On February 15 Beijing time, the ATP500 tournaments in Dallas and Rotterdam, along with the ATP250 in Buenos Aires, concluded with champions crowned, as the tournaments in Doha, Rio de Janeiro, and Delray Beach began their matches.

Shelton

In Dallas, the final was contested between two homegrown players, Shelton and Fritz, who had previously played only twice with one win apiece. As the top two seeds, these American players—ranked eighth and ninth in the world respectively—met in the final, promising an exciting showdown.

At the start, Fritz displayed excellent first serves and baseline skills, quickly breaking and holding serve to take a 3-0 lead. Although Shelton tried to adjust and improved his form, he struggled to effectively challenge Fritz, who closed the first set 6-3. In the second set, both players held serve with strong serving until the seventh game, where Shelton fought through long rallies to hold serve and then broke Fritz in the eighth game, leveling the match at 6-3 and forcing a deciding set.

In the final set, Shelton broke first, but Fritz immediately broke back and even earned two championship points on Shelton’s serve. Shelton refused to give in, saving three championship points with a volley winner and precise baseline shots to reach deuce. From there, momentum shifted, and Shelton eventually clinched the final set 7-5 to claim the Dallas title—his fourth career singles trophy and second ATP 500 level victory.

Shelton’s Path to the Title

First Round: 6-4, 6-4 vs Diallo

Second Round: 7-6(2), 6-7(4), 6-3 vs Mannarino

Quarterfinals: 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 vs Kecmanovic

Semifinals: 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(4) vs Shapovalov [7]

Final: 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 vs Fritz [1]

Cerundolo

Also winning on home soil was Argentine player F. Cerundolo, who entered the ATP250 Buenos Aires tournament as the top seed and advanced to the final without dropping a set. He faced second seed Darderi from Italy, who surprised many by reaching the Australian Open round of 16 this year. Notably, Darderi was born in Argentina but moved to Italy at age 10, making this matchup less intense given their shared heritage.

In the final, the Argentine showed great resilience and intelligence, saving five break points in the first set and dominating both baseline and net points, showcasing the advantage of his South American clay-court experience. Cerundolo broke early in the second set and secured another break at the end to win 6-4, 6-2, claiming his fourth career singles title and avenging last year’s final loss to Fonseca.

Cerundolo’s Road to the Title

First Round: Bye

Second Round: 6-0, 7-6(6) vs Drian [Q]

Quarterfinals: 6-4, 6-3 vs Kopriva

Semifinals: 6-3, 7-5 vs Echeverry [7]

Final: 6-4, 6-2 vs Darderi [2]

Cerundolo finally fulfilled his dream by reaching the Buenos Aires final on his third attempt. Similarly, “Little Bunny” Deminar reached the Rotterdam final for the third consecutive year. The Australian had previously lost to Sinner in 2024 and Alcaraz in 2025, and this year faced Aliassime, who came into the match with an eight-match winning streak.

Deminar

Rotterdam marked Deminar’s first tournament after the Australian Open. Compared to Aliassime, who had just won in Montpellier and traveled to the Netherlands, Deminar had a physical and energy advantage. He broke early in the final and took the first set 6-3.

In the second set, Aliassime improved his baseline returns, but Deminar’s relentless court coverage left the Canadian struggling to find chances. Aliassime was broken in the fifth game and appeared to have a recurrence of an Australian Open injury, requiring medical attention during a changeover. Deminar broke again in the seventh game and closed out the set 6-2, finally capturing the Rotterdam title after three consecutive finals appearances without dropping a break point throughout the match.

Interestingly, a week earlier Deminar’s fiancée, Bolt, won the WTA250 Ostrava event, marking the third time this tennis couple won back-to-back titles on the same tour week (previously in February 2024 at WTA San Diego and ATP Acapulco, and June 2024 at WTA Nottingham and ATP ’s-Hertogenbosch).

Deminar’s Path to the Title

First Round: 7-6(3), 6-2 vs Fis

Second Round: 6-4, 6-2 vs Wawrinka [W]

Quarterfinals: 3-6, 7-6(4), 7-5 vs Van de Zandschulp

Semifinals: 6-4, 6-3 vs Humbert

Final: 6-3, 6-2 vs Aliassime [2]

(Written and edited by Sunny, photos courtesy of Visual China)