Jul 27, 2025; Washington, D.C., USA; Alex de Minaur (AUS) celebrates with the championship trophy after his match against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (ESP)(not pictured) in the men's singles final of the Mubadala Citi DC Open at Rock Creek Park Tennis Center.

tennis

Alex de Minaur Scripts Double Digit History By Capturing ATP Citi DC Open 2025 Title vs Davidovich Fokina

Aussie No. 1 saves three championship points en route to gritty triumph.

Newly crowned World No. 8 Alex de Minaur saved three championship points en route to a nail-biting 5-7 6-1 7-6(3) win over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the 2025 Citi DC Open final on Sunday. The Australian produced his best tennis when it mattered most, leaving fans at the American capital completely gobsmacked. For Davidovich Fokina, the heartbreak continues – the Spaniard threw away two championship points vs Miomir Kecmanovic at Delray Beach earlier this year. Meanwhile, de Minaur has secured his 10th trophy on the ATP circuit.

De Minaur Completes Terrific Ten in Washington

Alex de Minaur saves THREE championship points to win the title in Washington! 🤯🏆🏛️ #MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/h3hpUmIoez
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 28, 2025

Not many people would have anticipated this final at the start of the week. However, both players took scenic routes to enter the summit clash. While de Minaur had to overcome a tricky battle against Lehecka in the Round of 16, ADF needed late night comeback heroics in his quarterfinal vs top seed Fritz. He was also a point away from rekindling some Spanish magic, but his fellow 26-year-old had other ideas.

With both players being among the fastest on tour, there were bound to be plenty of pacy exchanges. ADF broke early to take a 2-1 lead, but relinquished his advantage within a game. However, another break in the 11th game of the set followed by an overhead putaway on serve helped him grab the opener. Although the Australian comfortably took the second set, the decider was one for the ages. Fokina squandered advantages of 5-3 (30-0), as well as three championship points at 5-4 on the de Minaur serve.

Alex de Minaur won the Washington Open title like this

🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯 pic.twitter.com/82tRAWSJwS
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) July 28, 2025

It was a defensive masterclass from the Aussie, who will climb up five spots to No. 8 in the world on Monday. In the deciding tiebreak, he called all the shots. “It’s something about this court,” said de Minaur after his win. “I did it in 2018 against Rublev and honestly, I just kind of knew I could do it. He went on to reach the final that year, losing to Zverev at the age of 19. “I just backed myself and told myself to commit no matter what, and if I lost it was going to be on my terms.”

‘You Deserved the Title Today’ – de Minaur to Davidovich Fokina

Seeking his maiden trophy on the professional tour, it was another occasion of Davidovich Fokina falling agonisingly short. At the beginning of the 2025 season, the Spaniard failed to convert two championship points against Kecmanovic at Delray Beach. He also lost to Machac in the Acapulco final. But according to de Minaur, who has taken a 3-2 lead in the rivalry vs ADF, the first title is coming soon for the newlywed superstar.

“You’re way too good to not have one of these [trophies], claimed the 10-time tour-level trophy holder. Interestingly, de Minaur and Fokina lead the ATP field in terms of hard court wins in 2025. They are also two of just four players to have played in multiple finals on the surface this year (alongside Alcaraz and Rublev). The Australian continued, “You deserved it today. I just got lucky. You are a hell of a competitor, hell of a player.”

A classy gesture from Alex de Minaur 👏

He consoles Davidovich Fokina after a heartbreaking final. 💔#MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/KYGpyzppib
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 28, 2025

The 7th seed in DC will now head to Toronto, where he will feature in the National Bank Open Masters-1000 starting from Monday.

(Image Credits: Geoff Burke, Imagn Images)

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina

Alex de Minaur

ATP

Citi DC Open 2025

National Bank Open

Taylor Fritz

Tennis

US Open

Sankalp Harikrishnan

A passionate sports fan through and through, I am currently pursuing my MA in Global Sports Journalism. I specialise in tennis and football writing at The Playoffs News, and I have prior experience working at EssentiallySports and Sportskeeda. Born and raised in Bengaluru, India, sport was my safe space right from my childhood. After trying my hand at multiple sports and representing my educational institutions in cricket, badminton and table tennis, I found sports media to be my calling.