David Ferrer won an all-Spanish showdown, beating compatriot Feliciano Lopez 7-5 7-5 to claim the 25th title of his career on Sunday at the Malaysian Open.
The battling Ferrer, chasing one of four spots remaining at next
month’s ATP season wrap-up event in London, was playing in his 50th
career final as he faced Lopez in a battle of the tournament’s top
two seeds.
He is the only active player to reach the half-century outside of the “big four” grand slam winners: Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Novak
Djokovic and Andy Murray.
Ferrer improved his record over Lopez to 9-6 and strengthened his grip on provisional eighth place for London with five weeks to play in the regular season.
A Lopez double-fault handed Ferrer three match points, Ferrer taking the match on the second to win the clash in 93 minutes.
The victory came after Ferrer missed more than two months of summer play with a shoulder injury.