Sebastian Baez defeats qualifier Mariano Navarro to win Rio Open

Sebastian Baez won the Rio Open presented by Claro on Sunday, his biggest title to date. The Argentine defeated qualifier Mariano Navone 6-2, 6-1 in the ATP 500 final. It is the fifth seed's first title above the ATP 250 level, and his fifth tour-level trophy overall.

"Amazing, amazing. All week I felt so good here in Rio. I said before, I liken [it to] home because of the crowd, the people, everything," Baez said.

"In the preseason I did one week here, so I know this place, I know the people and I enjoyed [all my] time inside and outside the court."

Navone had never won an ATP Tour match before this week. The 22-year-old broke into the spotlight with a memorable run in Brazil, earning the admiration of the Brazilian crowd, who cheered him on until the end.

But the more experienced Baez proved too strong on the red clay. The champion raced to a 4-0 lead before Navone could find any rhythm in the match, and he never looked back, winning the championship after one hour and 23 minutes.

Baez won 58% of his return points, according to Infosys ATP Stats, and broke Navone's serve six times out of 14 chances.

"I think it's so important because in your first final you'll be more nervous, of course," Baez said. "I think I did so well in the start in both sets, so I think that was the key."

Whenever the finalist was not aggressive enough in rallies, Baez punished him with timely shots from difficult positions. It seemed like Baez was always one step ahead. This forced Navone to press harder, resulting in more errors.

Baez will rise to a career-high No. 21 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday from No. 30. Navone will enter the Top 100 for the first time, at No. 60.

"Amazing, amazing," Baez said. "But I want more for sure."

SportsLigue