Temperatures were hot and so was the tennis in the first set of the singles final in the Legg Mason Tennis Classic Sunday afternoon. With Arnaud Clement and Andy Murray trading haymakers, spontaneous combustion seemed possible.
Then it happened. A blister on Murray’s finger popped, and with it went his chances. Clement won 7-6 (7-3), 6-2 to become France’s first champ here since Yannick Noah in 1985.
Clement, 28, claimed his fourth career title and second this season. Sunday’s win capped a brilliant Legg Mason run for the No. 11 seed. He topped former world No. 1s, Lleyton Hewitt and Marat Safin, in the previous two rounds and didn’t lose a set this week.
On Sunday, Clement lost his opening service game, but took control of the match with his aggressive ground strokes, leaping off the DecoTurf surface to rip backhands and forehands deep into the corners.
“I had to play my best tennis,” said Clement, who won $75,000. “It was a high-level first set.”
The players matched each other shot for shot in the first set, each winning 38 points, before Clement won the final four of the tie-breaker. In the second set, Clement broke Murray’s first two service games to take a 4-0 lead. By then Murray had burst a pair of finger blisters.
“I’ve never had a blister before. It was quite difficult,” said Murray, 19.
“You try not to think about it. It’s like when you guys are writing, nudging your arm when you’re trying to write your words.”
Clement time
» Clement defeated Murray last September to win the U.S. Open.
» In 2004, Clement lost to Fabrice Santoro in the longest match ever played in male professional tennis history (6 hours, 33 minutes).
