ATP Tour

Fearnley saves 6 championship points, wins Newport Challenger; 20-year-old Searle triumphs

Jacob Fearnley earned a dramatic victory Sunday when he saved six championship points to win the Cerity Partners Hall of Fame Open in Newport, Rhode Island. Fearnley headlines a British affair of champions this week at ATP Challenger level, alongside 20-year-old Henry Searle and Jan Choinski.

Turning 25 years old this week, Fearnley escaped fourth seed Adam Walton 5-7, 7-6(8), 6-4 in a thrilling final at the Newport grass-court tournament. The Briton trailed 5-7, 1-5 before storming back to earn one of the comeback wins of the season. He saved five match points on return at 3-5 in the second set, including a recovery from a 0/40 deficit. Fearnley again saved a match point at 6/7 in the tie-break before winning four of the next five points to force a decider.

The former No. 49 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, Fearnley earned a place in the record books with his victory. His comeback marks the most match points saved in an ATP Challenger final since 2022, when Wu Yibing also saved six match points to win the Indianapolis title.

Fearnley, who was a four-time ITA All-American during a standout career at Texas Christian University, is a perfect 5-0 in Challenger finals. He won his first Challenger crown in 2024 on the grass courts of Nottingham.

Fearnley was not the only Briton to triumph on the Challenger circuit this weekend. Searle, the 2023 Wimbledon boys’ singles titlist, collected his second Challenger title of the season, both of which have come on grass. The 20-year-old won the Lexus Nottingham Challenger, where he dropped one set across five matches. He beat top seed Clement Chidekh 6-4, 6-4 in the final.

^{Henry Searle at the Lexus Nottingham Challenger. Credit: Ben Cook/LTA}

Searle, seventh in the PIF ATP Live Next Gen Race, is enjoying a breakthrough summer. He claimed his first Challenger trophy at the grass-court event in Dublin on 21 June and has now won 10 consecutive matches at that level. The lefty is up to a career-high No. 214 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Choinski also lifted his second Challenger title of the season. The 30-year-old was crowned champion at the BRAWO OPEN in Braunschweig, Germany after his final victory against Hugo Gaston 4-6, 6-0, 6-4. Choinski has won nine consecutive Challenger finals since falling in his first final appearance. He is up to a career-high No. 75 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Piros, Mejia, Dellien, Broska win titles
Hungarian Zsombor Piros captured back-to-back titles, following up last week’s victory in Brasov with a triumph at the Concord Iasi Open in Romania. The 26-year-old defeated Titouan Droguet 6-1, 7-6(2) in the final to join Facundo Diaz Acosta as the only players to win four Challenger titles this season.

Nicolas Mejia enjoyed a dream week in Bogota, Colombia, lifting the trophy in his home country’s capital city. The Colombian, who was also the top seed at the Kia Open, made a quick transition back to clay courts after reaching the second round of Wimbledon. Mejia downed Chile’s Matias Soto 6-1, 7-5 in the championship match. The 26-year-old is at a career-high No. 133 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Hugo Dellien won his 16th career Challenger trophy at the Citta' Di Trieste, where he rallied from a set down in his final three matches of the tournament. The 33-year-old Bolivian overcame 20-year-old Matej Dodig 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 in the clay-court final.

German Florian Broska was making just his eighth appearance at an ATP Challenger event. That did not stop the 28-year-old from entering the winner’s circle at the ETHIAS PROVINCE OPEN in Liege, Belgium. Broska beat Lorenzo Giustino 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-1 in the final. Broska is at a career-high No. 292.