Swiss Damien Wenger was crowned champion of Rwanda Open M25 after defeating American Oliver Crawford 2-0 in the final at Kigali Ecology Tennis Club on Sunday. READ ALSO: Crawford to face Wenger in Rwanda Open M25 final. Wenger, 23, won Sunday’s final in two sets 6-4, 6-2 to claim his first ever M25 tournament. The champion admits he was ‘a bit scared’ to face Crawford who was the highest ranked in the tournament (295th on ITF world ranking) but he was motivated by the fact that he wanted to avenge against the American after he beat him previously at his home country. “I’m happy for the victory with a lot of emotions. I knew I was not favorite to win this match because he (Crawford) is ranked higher than me but I started well and stayed focused from the very beginning. So that’s what helped me today,” Wenger said after winning Sunday’s final. “Last time you destroyed me, today I took a revenge,” he joked. The Swiss, who is ranked 408 on the ITF world ranking, also won the men’s doubles after he and Corentin Denolly beat Guy Orly Iradukunda (Burundi) and Abraham Asaba (Ghanaian) 4-6 7-6⁵ 10-5 in the final on Saturday. Wenger will stay in Kigali for one more week where he eyes yet another trophy at the second week of Rwanda Open M25 which kicks off Monday, September 11 until Sunday, September 17. On top of the trophy and 25 points, Wenger was awarded a cash prize of $3,600 while Crawford took home $2,120 and 18 points. Rwanda Open used to bring together tennis players from Rwanda and the region but, after adding it to the ITF World Tennis Tour “Futures” calendar, organisers (Rwanda Tennis Federation) opened doors to professional tennis players from across the globe as per of making it more competitive. A host of professional tennis players have not only shown interest but also confirmed their participation in the competition since it gives points to the ATP ranking as well increased prize money.
