British number two Dan Evans achieved his best career result to date by beating Tallon Griekspoor to win the Citi Open in Washington.
The 33-year-old had only dropped one set en route to his fourth ATP Tour final, overcoming Grigor Dimitrov, Frances Tiafoe, Alexander Shevchenko and Gregoire Barrere earlier in the week.
Prior to this year's Citi Open, Evans was on a seven-match losing streak at the top level, but the world number 21 bested Griekspoor 7-5 6-3 to clinch his first ATP 500 crown.
Not until the pivotal 12th game of the first set would either player make a breakthrough, as Griekspoor lost his serve thanks to a couple of unforced errors, and it was a similar story late on in the second set, which was delayed by an hour and a half due to storms.
Following seven successive holds, Evans capitalised on a pair of double faults from the Dutchman to establish a 5-3 lead, although he came under the cosh while serving for the Championship, facing four break points.
However, the Briton's admirable resilience came to the fore, as Griekspoor squandered all of those opportunities before sending one final backhand return into the net.
Evans's triumph in Washington adds to his maiden career title from the 2021 Murray River Open, and he has become the first British man in 20 years to win the Citi Open crown following Tim Henman's success in 2003.
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