David Ferrer Wins Auckland Tennis Title Ahead of Australian Open

David Ferrer beat Philipp Kohlschreiber in straight sets to win the Heineken Open tennis championship for the third year in a row.

Ferrer, ranked fifth by the ATP World Tour, won 7-6 (7-5) 6-1, over the No. 19 German last night in Auckland. It was the 30-year-old Spaniard’s fourth career triumph at the tournament, which is a warm-up for the Australian Open.

“I won in Auckland again and now I want to enjoy this moment because it is very special to me,” Ferrer said on the tournament’s website. “And then tomorrow I will go to Melbourne and I will practice again.”

The Australian Open, the year’s first Grand Slam tournament, begins tomorrow at Melbourne Park. Defending champions Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Victoria Azarenka of Belarus are the top seeds.

Bernard Tomic beat South African Kevin Anderson 6-3, 6-7 (2-7), 6-3 in the final of the Sydney International. It’s the 20-year-old Australia’s first ATP World Tour title.

“Now I know what it feels like to win a tournament, and it’s the best feeling in the world,” Tomic told reporters. “To do it here in Sydney is awesome. I can’t ask for anything better.”

Russia’s Elena Vesnina also captured her first title on the WTA Tour by beating defending champion Mona Barthel of Germany 6-3, 6-4 in the final of the Hobart International in Australia.

Australia’s Lleyton Hewitt beat seventh-ranked Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina 6-1, 6-4 in the final of the Kooyong Classic, an eight-man exhibition event in Melbourne.

To contact the reporter on this story: Bob Bensch in London at bbensch@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Christopher Elser at celser@bloomberg.net.