Frenchman Saddier lands first title at Italian Open

ROME: France’s Adrien Saddier produced a blistering finish to beat compatriot Martin Couvra by two strokes for his first European Tour title at the Italian Open on Sunday.

The 33-year-old Saddier trailed by three shots as he entered the back nine but made five birdies on the closing stretch to claim victory on his 200th start on the circuit.

He finished with a four-under 66 to end on 14 under for the tournament, forcing Couvra to settle for second place after his 69.

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Scotland’s Calum Hill and Englishman Dan Bradbury shared third place on 10 under.

“It’s great. It’s taken so much work to be able to do this. I’m just grateful,” said an emotional Saddier.

“I started the back nine really good and I just said ‘just stay in your own zone, just keep focused, make the putts’. And I did it.”

Meanwhile, Carlos Alcaraz won the Italian Open on May 18 after beating rival Jannik Sinner 7-6 (7/5), 6-1 in the final and firing a warning shot for Roland Garros.

The Spaniard claimed victory in his fourth final of the season and sent a message to the rest of the men’s tour for Roland Garros where he will defend the title.

Sinner tops the world rankings, but his 26-match winning streak was ended by Alcaraz, also the man who had last beat him in last year’s China Open final.