Jack Draper kept it classy in defeat after losing at the hands of Andrey Rublev in the final of the Qatar Open on Saturday.
The young Brit was seeking his first-ever victory over his Russian rival but was unable to deliver the goods, slipping to a 7-5 5-7 6-1 defeat.
The first two sets were closely contested, each going to a tiebreak with Rublev drawing first blood and Draper hitting back at the second time of asking.
Draper began to tire in the decisive third set, allowing Rublev to gain the upper hand and power his way to victory.
There was plenty of good sportsmanship on show at the trophy presentation, with Draper congratulating Rublev and admitting that he was simply too strong when it mattered.
“It’s been an amazing week,” said Draper. “I want to say congratulations to Andrey, he was too good today and he outlasted me. In the third set he was a bit too strong. Congratulations to you.
“I hope you have a great rest of the season, you deserve it. All the best. Also just congratulations to his team, I know the hard work that gets put in at any ATP 500 event, it’s so difficult.”
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