Rising Spanish tennis player Roberto Bautista Agut has earned his second ATP title from his last three tournaments by beating the Czech Lukas Rosol 6-3 4-6 6-2 to win the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart.
Ranked 23rd after starting the season on 59th, Bautista Agut will move into the top 20 for the first time as he continued a tradition of Latin winners at the event.
Of the last 10 editions, six have been won by Spaniards. Argentinians and Spaniards have won nine of the last 12, including two titles from Rafael Nadal before he broke into the elite.
Bautista Agut lifted the first trophy of his career the week before Wimbledon with a title on grass in the Netherlands.
He has now added a clay honour to his portfolio as the event at the Weissenhof club closed out its clay history and switches to grass for 2015.
The tournament will open the new three-week grass-court run to Wimbledon, starting the day after the Roland Garros final.
Bautista Agut triumphed in just under one and three-quarter hours with only two aces to 13 for Rosol. But the Spaniard made up for a lack of overt firepower with a punishing game which left his opponent looking for answers from the start.
