(January 12, 2013) World No. 5 David Ferrer topped out 2008 Auckland champion Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-6 6-1 in a mere 78 minutes to see the Spaniard join Australia’s Roy Emerson as the only four-time winners of the tournament.
Ferrer captued his first Auckland title in 2007 and has won the last three consecutive titles.
“I’m really happy, because I did a new record for my career,” Ferrer said. “It’s really nice to win one ATP tournament, but four times is very difficult.
“I think the first set was the key. He served to win the first set, but he didn’t take his chance. I tried to fight for every point and in the important moments, I was there. In the tie-break, I played better.”
“Twice, I was a break up and had a good opportunity to take the set, Kohlschreiber said. “I played really well, but I think after winning the first set, he missed almost nothing. He returned everything and my level dropped a bit. It’s very tough to play against him. The second set is a good example of him being too good all over the place… Overall, it was a great week. I really enjoyed it. It’s not every week I play in a final.”
Ferrer will now make his way to Melbourne for the Australian Open where he meets Belgium’s Olivier Rochus in the first round.
