Marcos won his second ATP Challenger Tour title of the season at the Odlum Brown VanOpen in Vancouver on Sunday evening, rallying from a break down in both sets to defeat Farrukh Dustov 7-6(6), 6-3.
Marcos, who improved to 72-25 on the circuit, also trailed 3-5 in the opening tie-break but fought back behind an impressive defensive display. Marcos converted on his third championship point when Dustov misfired on a mid-rally backhand. It was the former World No. 8's second title of the year (Nottingham) and second in Vancouver, having defeated Xavier Malisse in 2009.
"When you play guys you never played before, you feel they're more relaxed than you and they play very aggressive,” said Marcos. “I was very defensive all week and kept fighting and I'm very happy to come through. It means a lot. I'm grinding in there until I get back to where I want to be.
"[Vancouver is] amazing. There are no words. It's an amazing tournament. The sponsors, the staff, ball kids, everybody does a great job. It's a pleasure coming back."
Next up for Marcos is the Comerica Bank Challenger in Aptos, California. Marcos is the second seed at the ATP Challenger Tour event and will open his campaign against wild card Andre Dome, currently No. 1176 in the Emirates ATP Rankings.
The first-round match is scheduled for Tuesday, beginning not before 5:45pm.
