"Yes it's me": Sebastian Baez wins the premiere title in Estoril - of all things against the bracelet hero Tiafoe
Argentinian Sebastian Baez (ATP No. 59) celebrated his first title on the ATP tour in Estoril.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit:
May 01, 2022, 07:38 pm

Baez beat Frances Tiafoe 6: 3, 6: 2 in the final and will thus move into the top 50 in the tennis world for the first time on Monday - in the current live ranking he is in 40th place thanks to the 250 points from Portugal.
The 21-year-old didn't get off to a good start, fell behind with a break and had to fend off three breakballs to make it 0:3. "I started so nervous and he was so good," Baez said afterwards .
Tiafoe as inspiration for Baez
The craziest story of all, however: Frances Tiafoe had presented herself as a kind of inspiration for Baez - indirectly. "Why not me?": Baez wrote these words on the TV camera glass throughout the week following his wins. How did he get it? Tiafoe wore a bracelet with the same text, Baez apparently noticed.
After his victory in the final, he modified the spell accordingly. "Yes it's me," he then wrote.
Frances Tiafoe: "Incredible week"
Frances Tiafoe, however, presented himself as a good loser, as always. He had had his back against the wall a few times during the tournament, was already behind with set and break against Dusan Lajovic, had turned around a 2:5 deficit against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the final round and in the semifinals against Sebastian Korda after 4:6, 2:5 behind, saved three match points and still won.
"Incredible job from Sebastian," said Tiafoe afterwards. "He deserved it, he was better than me today." But Tiafoe had also enjoyed the week. "I have to thank you guys, honestly. You made this an incredible week for me"; he explained to the audience. "I played some crazy matches and I hope you enjoyed it. (...) This is one of my favorite places to play."
Of course, Baez also let himself be celebrated. And told Tiafoe: "Why not me? And why not you, man?"
Maybe next year.