Dominic Thiem won the Rio Open on his favorite surface of clay Sunday in a tournament victory which he hopes will jump-start his season after a slow start. Thiem claimed his eighth ATP singles title and his sixth on clay with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain. Now he's off to Acapulco for this week's Mexican Open, which he won last year on Acapulco's hardcourts. "Of course it's not easy," said Thiem, who was to fly Sunday to Acapulo, where six of the ATP's top 10 are playing. "I did the same last year, and it worked out pretty well. It's not the greatest preparation, but I hope I can make it one more time. The confidence is pretty high now. I feel great the way I'm playing." The Austrian is ranked No. 8 by the ATP and was seeded second in Rio. But he became the favorite as soon as top-seeded Kei Nishikori was beaten in the first round. He won all five matches in Rio, and didn't drop a set. Carreno Busta is now winless in four matches against Thiem. For some consolation, the Spaniard won the doubles title on Saturday with teammate Pablo Cuevas, defeating Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah 6-4, 5-7, 10-8. Thiem's victory comes on the night of the first of two parades at the Sambadrome, with another set for Monday in a street stadium likely to draw 80,000 revelers. Thiem said he saw just a tiny bit of the Carnival atmosphere, getting a look at one of hundreds of Rio block parties during the week. "It was right on the street," Thiem said of a block party near his hotel. "It was pretty impressive." In receiving his trophy, he said he'd like to come back. But there are reports the event may be moved off clay to the new Olympic tennis arena and its hardcourt set up. "Enjoy the rest of the Carnival," Thiem said on center court as he accepted his trophy from three-time French Open winner Gustavo Kuerten. Sock takes Delray Beach title as Raonic withdraws Jack Sock claimed his second ATP title of 2017 on Sunday as top-seeded Milos Raonic withdrew before the Delray Beach Open final with a torn hamstring. Canada's Raonic, ranked fourth in the world, was playing his first tournament since suffering his fourth adductor muscle injury in 12 months at the Australian Open in January. Raonic told the Tennis Channel he was hurt in a semi-final win over former US Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro on Saturday night. "I didn't think much of it," Raonic said. "I thought it was just tightness from the match, but this morning I woke up unable to walk properly and did quite extensive treatment with my team. "We came down to the conclusion that it was a slight tear of the hamstring in my right leg." Sock, who added a second title of the year to the one he lifted in Auckland in January, called it "very unfortunate". "We've had a lot of good battles and I was looking forward to the challenge," added Sock, who claimed a third career ATP title and is projected to reach a career-high 18 in the world rankings on Monday. "I'd be a little more excited and full of energy if I had gone out and won it on court, but on the flip side, a title is a title." Sock said that Raonic notified him personally about the withdrawal shortly before he was to warm up for the match. He said he was surprised after seeing Raonic defeat former US Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina in the semifinals on Saturday night. "I'm sure Milos would have loved to play, but you've got to look ahead with some big tournaments coming up," Sock said. Tsonga moves up 4 places after Marseille win Marseille winner Jo-Wilfried Tsonga returned to the world's top 10 when the ATP rankings were released on Monday. The 31-year-old Frenchman won his third title on the south coast of France on Sunday, beating compatriot Lucas Pouille 6-4, 6-4 in the final. Tsonga moved up four places to seventh, his highest ranking since June last year. Pouille also gained two places to move up to 15th while Austria's Dominic Thiem dropped one spot to ninth despite winning the title in Rio de Janeiro. American Jack Sock moved up three places into the top 20 after winning the Delray Beach tournament. Andy Murray held onto the world No. 1 ranking ahead of Novak Djokovic, with neither of them in action last week. — Agencies
