MY ACCOUNT
David Goffin is wary he will face “a great fighter” when he tackles Alex Molcan in Sunday’s final of the Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakesh.
Experienced Belgian Goffin is a five-time tournament winner on the ATP Tour, and his Slovakian opponent is chasing his first title at this level.
However, their one past meeting went Molcan’s way when they met in the Melbourne ATP 250 tournament in January, and although that match was on hardcourts and this final is on clay, Goffin respects his left-handed opponent’s game.
Goffin made sure of his place in the title match with a 6-3 6-3 win over Argentinian Federico Coria, while Molcan, who beat Felix Auger-Aliassime earlier in the week, was a 6-1 7-5 victor against Serbian Laslo Djere.
Speaking of the threat posed by Molcan, Goffin said: “He’s a great fighter, he’s moving so well. He’s lefty, so he’s using his lefty game really well on clay, especially two days ago against Felix, he played well. So it’s a tough opponent.”
Goffin, quoted on the ATP Tour website, said he was pleased to get his clay season under way in fine style, even if he felt jittery at times against Coria.
“I managed to deal with my emotions at the end to finish the match, so I’m happy to play another final, especially here, the first tournament on clay,” Goffin said. “I will give everything tomorrow.”
