Sofia Open: Jack Draper defeated in maiden ATP Tour final as Adrian Mannarino wins Bulgarian battle

Adrian Mannarino defeated Jack Draper 7-6(6) 2-6 6-3 in the Sofia Open Final on Saturday, the Brit’s first ATP tour final.

Although Draper dominated the second set to force a decider, the far more experienced now-five-time title winner Mannarino came through to triumph in Bulgaria.

The Frenchman eventually came out on top in an absorbing first set, breaking the Draper serve immediately to get off to an ideal start.

The young Brit showed his mettle to break back immediately, and showcased his ability to dictate play from the baseline with an emphatic hold to love at 2-1.

From that point onwards, there was very little to separate either player as the first set went to an inevitable tie-break.

Mannarino’s frustration was clear to see when he saw a forehand wide to go 5-4 down in the tie-break, but he would have the last laugh.

A rare, albeit crucial break of Draper’s serve ensured the Frenchman drew first blood after the 21-year-old hit a long forehand return.

Draper took advantage of the first of two break points to go 4-1 up as the Mannarino played a long return.

After the keenly-contested nature of the opening set, few would have predicted the ease in which Draper secured the second.

He took a mere 33 minutes to restore parity in the contest, breaking the world No.23 immediately and doing so again in the fifth game to move 4-1 ahead.

Draper was level with a superb hold to love in the eighth game and wiped out Mannarino’s lead in a flash.

However, Mannarino stepped things up a gear in the third set and wouldn’t allow Draper to take an inch, hardly dropping a point on his serve.

The 25th-ranked Mannarino broke the Brit after a double fault, powering home a forehand winner for 4-2.

Draper failed to capitalise on two break points in the ninth game of the decider, as Mannarino closed out the match to win his third title of the season.