WINSTON-SALEM: Ilya Ivashka beat Mikael Ymer 6-0, 6-2 in the Winston-Salem Open to become the first player from Belarus to win an ATP Tour singles title in 18 years.
Ranked 63rd in the world, the 27-year-old Ivashka is the lowest-ranked champion in the event's 10-year history, and the sixth player this season ranked outside the top 50 to win an ATP Tour title.
Max Mirnyi was the last Belarusian winner in 2003 at Rotterdam Ivashka lost only one set in six tournament matches, with that one coming in the second round.
He beat top-seeded Pablo Carreno Busta in the quarterfinals.
Ivashka held serve throughout the final while breaking Ymer three times.
The 22-year-old Ymer, ranked 90th, was the first player from Sweden to reach an ATP Tour singles final since 2011.
The hard-court tournament is a tune-up event for the U.S.Open, the year's last Grand Slam tournament that starts Monday in New York.