Summary Muller broke through for his first ATP World Tour title with a straight sets win over Daniel Evans
SYDNEY (AFP) - Luxembourg s Gilles Muller broke through for his first career ATP World Tour title with a straight sets win over Britain s Daniel Evans in the Sydney International final on Saturday.
Left-hander Muller, 33, one of the Tour s biggest servers, finished too strongly for the 67th-ranked Evans, winning 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 in 88 minutes.
He finally claimed a title after 17 years on the circuit with his victory continuing his impressive record of consistency in Sydney after reaching the semi-finals in the past two years.
Muller at 34 was the highest-ranked player in the top 50 without a tournament title after losing in five finals, including two last season, both on grass in s-Hertogenbosch and Newport.
Muller, who was handed his winner s trophy by Australian Grand Slam great Rod Laver, became emotional and broke down in tears during his victory speech at the presentation ceremony.
"What a night! I ve waited a long time for this," he said.
"It just means so much to me to win this tournament in front of my wife and boys."
Muller later told reporters: "It means a lot. I was waiting a long time. I played my first final in 2004. We are in 2017 and I waited 13 years to win my first title. I m just very happy.
"For the past two or three years, it was probably my biggest goal to win a title. I always dreamed of that, and I was so close last year.
"So I was very scared and worried that I was going to be one of those players that maybe would never win a title.
"Everything that happened tonight was like in a movie. Rod Laver there, standing on centre court with the trophy, my kids in the stands, I can t ask for more."
Evans saved two set points before the opening set went to a tiebreaker.
Muller took the set with a forehand winner and a smash and then got a double-break to control the second set and cruise to victory.
Evans, who knocked out the top seed Austria s Dominic Thiem in the quarter-finals, was bidding to become the first British singles champion in Sydney since Tim Henman in 1997.
"He served too good. Obviously the first-set tiebreak was a big one," Evans said.
"It would have been tough for him to regain focus and go again if I d won the first set, but I didn t.
"He was good front runner. I couldn t get anywhere near his serve."
