Marcos Baghdatis kept his promise to family and country to win ATP glory on Sunday night.

The charismatic Cypriot won his country's first ATP trophy by defeating Mario Ancic of Croatia 6-4, 6-0 in the final of the China Open in Beijing with an awe-inspiring display of power.

In a tense contest before a capacity 8,000 crowd at Beijing Tennis Centre, Baghdatis' superior strength, exemplified in his power-serving, proved too much for the speed and volleying skills of the Croatian.

After Ancic hit a baseline stroke out, Baghdatis kissed his necklace and clenched his fist as his victory began to sink in.

"I'm just too excited to express myself," Baghdatis said. "It is a great experience to win my first title, and it is also an emotion to win the first title for Cyprus.

"I know there are a lot people in my country watching me play - my fans, my family, my Davis Cup team-mates and captain, who have been supporting me in tennis and also my life. They are the people who have made me what I am now."

The win, coming after his majestic run to the Australian Open final and the Wimbledon semis, has elevated Baghdatis over American James Blake to No 8 on the rankings, and kept his dream of winning a Masters Cup by year-out on track.

The Croat, appearing in his first tournament since returning from back and knee injuries gained in a jet ski accident after Wimbledon, said he could take some positives out of the loss. "It's a great week for me and I'm proud of myself," he said. "A return like this is really something I hoped for."

Ancic stumbled at the end of the opening set of the singles final and seemed to hurt his leg, but the worry was soon over and Ancic consoled himself by winning the men's doubles title, with his Indian partner Mahesh Bhupathi after beating German Michael Berrer and Denish Kenneth Carlsen 6-4, 6-3 in one hour and nine minutes.

The women players will carry on the tennis fever in China Open today, with World No 1 Amelie Mauresmo topping the billing.

Mauresmo needs to overcome a sea of Russians before reaching her fifth WTA title of the season here at the seven-day tournament. Russia, out in force, will count on second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, third seed Nadia Petrova, eighth seed Maria Kirilenko and former world top 10 player Vera Zvonareva to defeat Mauresmo and claim the title.

(China Daily, Xinhua News Agency September 18, 2006)