Machac Outlasts Humbert for Czech Double Triumph
Under Adelaide’s baking heat, Tomas Machac turned a tense final into a gritty victory, joining Jakub Mensik in a rare Czech title sweep that echoes through the tour’s opening weeks.
In the sweltering close of the Adelaide International, Tomas Machac forged a path to his second ATP Tour title, edging Ugo Humbert 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-2 in a match that pulsed with baseline exchanges and mounting pressure. It marked a flawless Saturday for Czechia, coming hours after Jakub Mensik lifted the ASB Classic trophy over 2000 miles away in New Zealand by beating Sebastian Baez. Machac’s win, laced with heavy topspin and tactical resets, not only silenced Humbert’s lefty angles but revived a nation’s tennis legacy last seen in 1982 with Ivan Lendl and Tomas Smid.
The Czech’s week had built like a gathering storm, his straight-sets dismissal of second seed Tommy Paul earlier underscoring a return from injuries that tested his resolve. Humbert arrived sharp, having sliced through Terence Atmane, Tallon Griekspoor, Alexander Shevchenko, and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina with fluid returns and net poaches. Yet as the final stretched into its third hour, Machac’s endurance began to tilt the court in his favor, his crosscourt forehands landing deep and forcing the Frenchman into hurried defenses.
“I kept the focus in the third set and kept the level of my tennis very high in the third set. I started to play a little more aggressively and served well,” Machac said. “I am very glad that after my injuries, I can be in this moment with the trophy and with a great level of tennis.”
Third set surge breaks the deadlock
Machac charged into the decider with renewed fire, his one–two combinations of serve and inside-out forehand pulling Humbert side to side without mercy. He faced no break points in that set, his first serves booming at over 70% clip to dictate rallies from the outset. The air hummed with the crowd’s anticipation as Humbert’s backhand down-the-line shots began to clip the lines less precisely, the heat amplifying every unforced error after two hours and 25 minutes of combat.
This shift wasn’t mere luck; Machac had adjusted mid-match, shortening his backswing on returns to neutralize Humbert’s flat serves and countering slices with low, skidding underspin of his own. The Adelaide hard courts, with their moderate bounce, amplified his topspin’s grip, turning potential passing shots into outright winners. For the 27-year-old Humbert, chasing an eighth title in his 11th final, the collapse highlighted the razor edge where aggression meets fatigue.
Injury shadows yield to ranking rise
Leaping 11 spots to No. 24 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, Machac now carries this momentum into the Australian Open, where he draws Grigor Dimitrov in the opener. His 2-1 record in finals evens the head-to-head with Humbert at 1-1, a balance struck through Acapulco’s triumph last year and this week’s unyielding focus. The Czech’s game, rooted in baseline power and variable depth, thrives on these fast surfaces, hinting at deeper runs in Melbourne’s brighter glare.
Humbert, undeterred, heads to that same Grand Slam to face Ben Shelton first round, his versatile lefty game poised for quicker conditions. This double for Czechia injects vitality into the tour’s hard-court swing, blending Mensik‘s youthful surge with Machac’s seasoned grit. As the Adelaide cheers fade, both arrive in Melbourne not just healed, but hungry, their titles a launchpad for what could unfold under the major’s unforgiving lights.
