Zizou Bergs turned a rain-delayed Eastbourne final into the biggest win of his career, beating Ugo Humbert 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 on Sunday to claim his first ATP Tour title.
The Belgian arrived at the Lexus Eastbourne Open on a six-match tour-level losing streak. He left with a grass-court trophy, a jump in the live rankings and a place in Belgian tennis history as the first man from his country to win an ATP Tour title on grass.
The final had started Saturday but was stopped by rain after only three games. When play resumed Sunday morning, Humbert struck first, taking the opening set after breaking at 4-3.
But Bergs flipped the match fast. He controlled the second set, then held firm in the decider, saving both break points he faced across the final two sets, according to Infosys ATP Stats. He finished with 21 winners to Humbert’s 16.
When Humbert’s backhand return caught the net on championship point, Bergs jumped into the air and roared. The pressure is now on in a different way: he will enter Wimbledon at a new career high when the rankings update Monday.
“Thank you to my team,” Bergs said. “We make a great team. We make fun together and we definitely work together really well to always improve. If the results are not there, we keep focusing on improving, and that’s why we’re here today standing with the trophy.”
The result also squared Bergs’ head-to-head record with Humbert at 1-1. The sports world is watching what happens next because the rematch comes almost immediately: the pair have been drawn to meet again Tuesday in the first round at Wimbledon.
Humbert, the 27th seed at Wimbledon, was chasing his eighth ATP Tour title and second on grass after Halle in 2021.
“Zizou, I would like to congratulate you for you first ATP title,” Humbert said. “You played really great today, so congratulations to you and your team. See you in two days for the rematch at Wimbledon!”
