Fourth seed Philipp Kohlschreiber captured his second title at the BMW Open on Sunday, defeating No. 3 seed Marin Cilic 7-6(8), 6-3 in Munich.
Kohlschreiber saved seven of the eight break points he faced, including all four against his serve in the second set, to seal the final victory in one hour and 49 minutes. He secured his fifth win in eight meetings with Cilic to lift his first trophy of the season.
“I think we had a tight and great first set. I was a little more lucky in the important moments,” Kohlschreiber reflected to ATPWorldTour.com. “Maybe that was the key to the whole match. I had a good start in the second set, making a break and I held it until the end.”
The German improved to a 17-6 record at the ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tournament, adding to his triumph over Mikhail Youzhny in 2007. He is now 4-2 in title matches, and became the first two-time German winner at the event. In addition to winning € 71,900 in prize money, Kohlschreiber takes home a brand new white BMW Z4 sDrive28i and two business class tickets to South Africa courtesy of South African Airways.
“It’s tough to find the words when you win your home tournament,” said Kohlschreiber. “The win at the BMW Open in 2007 gave me a great start in my career. Now, in the later stages of my career, it’s an amazing feeling to win in front of my home fans.”
Cilic finished runner-up for the second time, having lost to Youzhny in the 2010 final. He was bidding to win his first clay-court crown in three finals, and fell to an overall final record of 6-7.
“I didn’t find a rhythm like I had in the days before. I think that had an impact during the match,” Cilic said. “I had four or five set points in the first set. I felt the whole time I was trying to catch him. Today’s conditions were pretty heavy, so I needed to find a good balance with everything. It’s unfortunate losing in the final for the second time, but I’m happy with the week. I’m going to put this final behind me and look forward to Madrid.”
