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Kicker Saves 2 MP For Buenos Aires Crown

A LOOK BACK
Copa San Cristobal presentada por FILA (Buenos Aires, Argentina): Third seed Nicolas Kicker celebrated his first ATP Challenger Tour title on home soil in dramatic fashion, saving two match points for the Buenos Aires crown on Sunday. The 25 year old defeated countryman Horacio Zeballos 6-7(5), 6-0, 7-5, rallying for the victory after two hours and 35 minutes. He denied one championship point at 5-3 in the decider, firing a forehand winner, and turned aside another when Zeballos served for the title a game later.

It was his third Challenger title in total, adding to victories in Perugia, Italy and Guayaquil, Ecuador last year. Kicker, who reached a pair of ATP World Tour 500 level quarter-finals this year (Rio de Janeiro & Hamburg), rises 12 spots to No. 87 in the Emirates ATP Rankings.

"In the third set, I started one break down and it cost me a lot to break back because he is a big server," said Kicker. "Luckily, I took the few chances I got. I went for it and I could win the match. I wanted to win the points easily. It is difficult with this kind of opponent that gives you little rhythm with his serve. It is very difficult to stay focused. But it was incredible how people supported me."

Northbay Healthcare Men's Pro Championships (Fairfield, California, U.S.A.): Mackenzie McDonald earned his moment in the spotlight on Sunday, lifting his maiden ATP Challenger Tour trophy in Fairfield. The Northern California native celebrated in front of friends and family as he defeated countryman Bradley Klahn 6-4, 6-2 in just 63 minutes.

Read Challenger Q&A with McDonald

Meanwhile, Klahn was appearing in his second consecutive final, having finished runner-up the week prior in Monterrey, Mexico. Learn more about the American's journey

Tashkent Challenger (Tashkent, Uzbekistan): Fourth seed Guillermo Garcia-Lopez was the last man standing in Tashkent, notching his second Challenger crown of the year on Saturday. The former World No. 23 is back in the Top 100 after defeating Kamil Majchrzak for the title 6-1, 7-6(1) in one hour and 32 minutes. Garcia-Lopez, who lifted the trophy in Scheveningen, Netherlands, earlier this year, gives Spain its ninth title of the season. Only Serbia (11) has more triumphs on the circuit in 2017.

"It's double joy for me winning the title and moving into the Top 100," said Garcia-Lopez. "It was a good match, Kamil played very well in the second set and put me under pressure, but I played well and used my backhand well. It's great to end a good week with a title."

Sparkasse Challenger Val Gardena (Ortisei, Italy): Italian wild card Lorenzo Sonego streaked to his first ATP Challenger Tour title on Sunday in Ortisei. The 22 year old celebrated his maiden crown on home soil with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over German qualifier Tim Puetz. Sonego reeled off 10 sets in a row after dropping his opener in the first round to Norbert Gombos, surging to the title in emphatic fashion. He is the fifth unseeded wild card to prevail this year, joining Jerzy Janowicz (Bergamo), Felix Auger-Aliassime (Lyon), Stefanos Tsitsipas (Genova) and Wu Yibing (Shanghai).

A LOOK AHEAD
There are four tournaments on four continents this week, highlighted by the $125,000 event in Ningbo, China. Two-time defending champion Yen-Hsun Lu is eyeing a three-peat and is joined by Asian #NextGenATP stars Wu Yibing and Duckhee Lee.

In Las Vegas, Sam Groth is back to defend his title and is joined by recent Tiburon and Stockton champion Cameron Norrie and seeded Americans Tennys Sandgren, Bjorn Fratangelo, Stefan Kozlov, Michael Mmoh and Reilly Opelka.

Six of the eight seeds at the inaugural event in Ismaning, Germany, are home hopefuls, with recent Monterrey winner Maximilian Marterer leading the pack. In Cali, Colombia, Horacio Zeballos, Federico Delbonis and Victor Estrella Burgos are the favourites.

ATP Challenger Tour 

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