Vacherot fights back to beat Lehečka and win Basel, Monaco's first 500

Valentin Vacherot has added the Swiss Indoors to his Shanghai Masters crown. The unseeded Monegasque came from a set down on Sunday to beat eighth seed Jiří Lehečka 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 in 1 hour and 54 minutes and win the Basel title. It is his second ATP Tour trophy, and according to the ATP he is the first player from Monaco to win an ATP 500 event since the category began in 2009.

A slow start, then no break points conceded

The opening set gave little hint of what was coming. Vacherot dropped serve three times as Lehečka took it 6-2. After that the match turned. Vacherot's serve held firm for the rest of the match: he saved all five break points he faced across the second and third sets, and his serving improved markedly in the decider.

"I hit really good shots at the right moments and I think sometimes it's about not playing perfect for the whole match and just playing good when it matters," Vacherot said afterwards, as quoted by the ATP.

The win also squared things with Lehečka. The Czech had beaten Vacherot in the Tokyo semi-finals earlier this autumn, and the Monegasque now leads their head-to-head 2-1.

Three top-25 scalps in one week

Vacherot had to go the long way round. He opened against Mariano Navone, then beat third seed Rafael Jódar, Holger Rune and sixth seed Taylor Fritz before the final. The ATP counts three top-25 wins in the week (Jódar at No. 11, Fritz at No. 13 and Lehečka at No. 21), which is the kind of run that won him Shanghai as a qualifier a year ago.

The title also puts him in rare company. According to Tennis Majors, only Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic had previously won both Shanghai and Basel. Vacherot's indoor record this season now stands at 9-1, with his only loss coming against Luca Van Assche in Lyon.

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He collects 500 ranking points and €483,335 in prize money, which lifts him back inside the top 30 of the PIF ATP Rankings.

Consolation for Lehečka

Lehečka was trying to become the first Czech champion in Basel in more than two decades. His week included wins over Stan Wawrinka, Daniel Altmaier and home hope Jérôme Kym, plus a semi-final against Jan-Lennard Struff in which he saved a match point. The 300 points for reaching the final move him up to No. 15 in the world.

Next up: Djokovic in Paris

Neither finalist gets much rest. Both move straight on to the Rolex Paris Masters, which starts on Monday, and Vacherot has drawn about the toughest first-round opponent possible: tenth seed Novak Djokovic. The seven-time Paris champion needs a deep run to qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin, but Vacherot won their only previous tour-level meeting, in the 2025 Shanghai semi-finals. Lehečka opens his Paris campaign against Alex Michelsen.