The Winnipeg National Bank Challenger came to a thrilling conclusion on Saturday, with champions crowned in both the singles and doubles events. Part of the ATP Challenger Tour since 2016, the tournament was held at the brand-new National Bank Tennis MB Hub at West St. Paul in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
In the singles championship match, Ryan Peniston of Great Britain defeated Leandro Riedi of Switzerland 6-4, 4-6, 6-4. Only a single break occurred in the deciding set, in the ninth game on Riedi’s serve. The 27-year-old Brit would go on to hold serve in the 10th game to clinch his maiden Challenger title.
The two-hour and 35-minute final wasn’t a typical match for Peniston this week. He cruised through his first three matches in just over an hour each – posting a bagel in the first set of all three of those matchups. However, his semi-final against sixth-seeded Arthur Cazaux of France wasn’t as straightforward, as he needed just over three hours to take down the rising star by a score of 6-3, 2-6, 7-5.
Singles finalist Riedi contested two matches on Saturday, also reaching the doubles finals alongside Canadian partner Gabriel Diallo. The pair emerged victorious against the all-Canadian duo of Taha Baadi and Juan Carlos Aguilar, winning 6-2, 6-3 in straight sets. While this was Riedi’s second Challenger title in doubles, it was the first professional doubles crown for Diallo. The win also marked the third-straight year a Canadian player was part of the winning doubles team.
