Rothesay International Eastbourne 2024: Two-time champion Taylor Fritz set to face Max Purcell in men’s final
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The countdown is on, the players are confirmed and we’re locking in for what’s set to be gripping men’s final at the Rothesay International Eastbourne, as Taylor Fritz and Max Purcell go head-to-head in a bid to be crowned King of the South Coast.
Top seed Fritz will take on world No.94 Purcell after the pair came through their semi-final clashes at Devonshire Park on Friday.
Purcell was the first to cement his spot in Saturday’s final after he put an end to the British crowd’s hopes of seeing a homegrown talent lift the trophy. The Australian edged Billy Harris, who has hit the form over his career over the grass court swing, to prevail 6-4, 5-7, 6-4.
The 26-year-old had to battle through two qualifying rounds to reach the main draw and has built up plenty of confidence across the week after defeating Laslo Djere, Lorenzo Sonego and Miomir Kecmanovic en route to becoming the fourth qualifier in the tournament’s history to reach the championship match.
Purcell arrived in Eastbourne on a four match losing streak but has hit a purple patch at the perfect time and his ever-growing confidence will pose a threat to the two-time champion on Saturday.
Speaking on his semi-final win, Purcell said "I have a new coach this week and I feel everything is coming together this week.
"It feels good. Qualifying last week in Halle gave me confidence, a couple of straight sets matches there. I felt that I was due to get a couple of wins, how many I don’t know."
While tomorrow will mark his first ATP tour singles final, Purcell has risen to the big occasion on the grass before, after he and fellow countryman Matthew Ebden claimed the coveted men’s doubles crown at Wimbledon back in 2022.
“I used doubles quite well earlier on in my career to play on the bigger courts and use that to hit with some of the big guys in the singles” he added. “That was a big part of my journey to the top 100 in singles. I’ve played Taylor and Vukic before, I’m not unfamiliar with them and I’ve had tight matches with both so whoever comes through I hope to have a tight match with them.
Fritz on the other hand proved to have the extra bit of quality in his match-up against Aleksandar Vukic – punching his ticket to his third final on the grass with a 7-6(5), 7-6(4) win.
The American knows exactly what’s required to taste title success in Eastbourne having raised the silverware in 2019 and 2022. He currently holds a 12-4 win record on the South Coast and will be hoping to become the first three-time champion at tournament when he returns to court tomorrow afternoon.
"It's been helping me all week" Fritz said on the advantage of playing on such a familar court. "I love playing here and I've said a lot of times it's extra special here because its where I got my first ever title which I was wanting for such a long time.
"This is always going to be a special tournament for me that's why I love coming back and hopefully I'll be back tomorrow to get number three."
Fritz has dominated his service games throughout the week but has been taken to a tie-break in five of the six sets hers contested this week against Thiago Seyboth Wild, Juncheng Shang and Vukic.
Tomorrow will mark the second meeting between the two on the ATP tour. Their first meeting came in Basel in 2023 and saw the world No.13 scrape through two tight tie-breaks to win 7-6(7), 7-6(4).
However, with both Fritz and Purcell having shown their class on on the grass through varying stages of their careers, it’s safe to say the trophy could be anyone’s tomorrow afternoon.
The men’s singles final will take place not before 14:30 BST and be available to watch live on BBC iPlayer and BBC digital channels.
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