Canada's Shapovalov lost to unseeded Nishioka in the final of Korea Open. CBC Sports

Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka defeated Canada’s fourth seed Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 7-6 (5) to clinch the Korean Open title on Sunday.

The 27-year-old Japanese, who defeated top seed and world No. 2 Casper Rudd in the quarterfinals, was impressive in defense and his counter-punching style eventually knocked down his highly ranked opponent in Seoul in just under two hours. Olympic Park Tennis Center.

Unseeded Nishioka, who appeared in his second championship match this year after reaching the Washington finals in August, got off to a great start and found his rhythm early to claim the first set.

The second set saw a change of pace as Shapavolov found his boundary from the backcourt to take a 3-1 lead. But Nishioka rallied to take the set to a tiebreak, where she worked strong to win her first tournament since her maiden title at the Schengen Open in 2018 – where she also defeated Shapovalov in their last meeting.

The ATP Tour returned to Seoul for the first time since 1996, when the city was granted a one-year license to stage the Korean Open.

Giving your opponent the final compliment: “You’re too nervous to play.” @denis_shapo @yoshihitotennis #KoreaOpen pic.twitter.com/MTKQesRbVS

,@tennisTV

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