Portuguese patriotism was all over the court this Sunday in Estoril, as Joao Sousa became the first ever local player to win an ATP tournament in Portugal. An emotional trophy ceremony, where even Joao parents took part and the national anthem was sung two times, showed the importance for the tournament and for Portuguese tennis. Tiafoe acknowledged that he was satisfied for Sousa and the moving celebration that Clube T\u00e9nis Estoril, while Sousa admitted that he achieved something really special that he didn\u2019t think it could happen.<\/p>\n
Joao Sousa defeats Frances Tiafoe by 6-4 6-4<\/strong><\/p>\n With no previous matches between the two contenders, the match stated under Sousa\u2019s dominance, who continued the trend of the previous matches in terms of baseline consistency, good mobility and smart tennis, finding spaces to attack Tiafoe without being in a rush. The American lacked of the strong first serves of previous matches (like against Carre\u00f1o), and lost the first set showing signs of disappointment with his own games, and becoming more and more erratic.<\/p>\n The trend continued in the second set, specially after Sousa got an early break which increased his confidence in the victory. It was not until 5-1 when Tiafoe took out all the pressure and started to play freely, breaking Sousa and putting a big amount of pressure on his shoulders. Finally, with 5-4 on his favour, Joao was able to close the match boosted by some good serves. The Portuguese fell on the floor, and tasted the glory while the crowd, who showed permanent support for their countryman, exploded in pride and delight.<\/p>\n