World no. 143 Borna Coric claimed his fourth Challenger title in Lugano. The former Masters 1000 champion and world no. 12 dominated the field en route to five victories and his first Challenger trophy since June 2022.
The struggling Croat entered Lugano with four consecutive losses. He won back-to-back ATP matches at only three tournaments since the 2023 Canada Masters, losing places on the ATP ranking list and edging closer to another top-150 exit.
Coric found his A-game in Lugano and lifted his first indoor Challenger title. Borna will pass over 20 rivals on the ATP ranking list with 75 points on his tally, moving closer to the top-100 return.
Borna Coric shines in Lugano 💫#ATPChallenger | @borna_coric pic.twitter.com/V4CgPEEyQx
— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) March 2, 2025
The former world no. 12 toppled four rivals without dropping serve, denying all ten break points and gathering a boost ahead of the title clash. The 2nd seed meet the top seed Raphael Collignon and earned a rock-solid 6-3, 6-1 victory in 58 minutes.
Borna faced no break points and kept the pressure on his opponent. The Belgian could not follow that pace. Raphael dropped half of the points in his games and suffered four breaks from eight opportunities offered to his opponent.
Borna Coric, United Cup 2025© Stream screenshot
Coric was off to a flying start. He held in the first game of the duel with a service winner and secured a break at love a few minutes later after Collignon’s double fault. Borna fired a booming serve in the third game, cementing the break and moving 3-0 up after 11 minutes.
Landing one good serve after another, the Croat held at love in the fifth game and forged a 4-1 advantage. Borna added another booming serve to his tally in the seventh game, moving 5-2 up and forcing Raphael to serve to stay in the opener.
Borna Coric, Almaty 2024© Stream screenshot
The Belgian held at 15 with a forced error and prolonged the set. However, Coric served for it at 5-3 and held at 30 for 6-3 in 31 minutes. Borna served well in the second set and kept the pressure on the other side. The Croat provided an early break in the first game.
He cemented it with a service winner in game two and made another push on the return at 2-0. Collignon missed a backhand and dropped serve at love to find himself near the exit door. Coric landed an unreturned serve in the fourth game for 4-0.
Borna Coric, United Cup 2025© Stream screenshot
He created another break point in the next one, seeking a bagel. However, Raphael saved it after an exchange and held to reduce the gap. The Croat clinched the sixth game at love with a service winner and made another push on the return at 5-1.
Borna broke at 15 after the rival’s double fault, delivering his third straight break and lifting a trophy in style.
Tennis World USA