Ugo Humbert cruises past Alexander Bublik to claim Dubai title

Ugo Humbert, the fifth seed, defeated Kazakh Alexander Bublik 6-4, 6-3, to win the Dubai Tennis Championships title on Saturday, his second of the season.

By winning the title, the 25-year-old Frenchman became only the third player in professional history to win his first six tour-level finals, joining Latvia's Ernests Gulbis and Slovakia's Martin Klizan.

"I really don't know, but I have a good statistic," Humbert said of his ability to rise to the occasion during title clashes. "I have a really good team around me."

The in-form Marseille champion edged a close first set when seventh seed Bublik fired a double fault in the tenth game, risking his arm and attempting a big second serve in a desperate bid to hold.

"It's not easy to play against Bublik," said Humbert, who will move up four spots to a career-high world ranking of 14 when the list is updated on Monday.

"I stayed really calm and really focused. He had some opportunities to break me in the first set but I knew exactly what I had to do."

Humbert, who defeated top seed and Australian Open runner-up Daniil Medvedev in the semi-final, used his excellent defensive skills to earn a break point in the next set and capitalized on Bublik's shot finding the net for a 3-1 lead.

He unleashed a monster forehand to go up 5-2, but a smiling Bublik attempted to throw a wrench in the works by riding a wave of support from the Center Court crowd.

But Humbert held his nerve two games later, saving a breakpoint and finishing the match on his second championship point with a passing winner.

"For sure, I was a bit stressed (in the final game)," added Humbert, who collapsed to the ground in joy after the victory before joining his team in the stands in emotional scenes.

"It was a little bit tight two or three points but I knew that it would be normal and was ready to suffer. I managed to play well in the last point."

Bublik missed an opportunity to win his second tour-level title this year, following his victory in Montpellier.

SportsLigue