Mathieu hits new high

Paul-Henri Mathieu announced his arrival on the ATP tour in Moscow yesterday by defeating Sjeng Schalken 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 to win the Kremlin Cup and the first tour title of his career.

Mathieu took an hour and 38 minutes to beat his Dutch opponent, and won eight consecutive games to close out the match. The 20-year-old becomes the first French player and first qualifier to win the Kremlin Cup as well as the first qualifier to win an ATP event this year. Before this week, he had only reached two tour quarter-finals.

Mathieu won eight matches in nine days in Moscow, including victory over the top seed, Marat Safin, in his semi-final. This despite losing the first set on six occasions.

"It's hard to realise that I have won my first ATP title," Mathieu said. "It does not happen very often that a qualifier wins an event.

"I think I can improve further and then I will see how good I can be," he added. "Right now I want to win as many matches as possible."

Magdalena Maleeva, the unseeded Bulgarian, came from behind to beat the second seed, American Lindsay Davenport, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 in the women's final to claim her first title of the year.

Maleeva, who had knocked out Venus Williams, the top seed, in the second round, prevailed 7-4 in the third set tie-break to clinch her third Kremlin Cup title.