Tennis: Nieminen too good for Ancic

Jarkko Nieminen won the Heineken Open today. File picture / Phil Walter, Getty Images

Finland's Jarkko Nieminen won his first ATP tennis tournament when he beat favourite Mario Ancic of Croatia in the Heineken Open final in Auckland today.

Nieminen, the seventh seed, was barely troubled to beat a strangely out-of-sorts Ancic 6-2 6-2 in little over an hour.

Ancic, the fifth seed, had been the form player in the tournament but he made numerous unforced errors in the match, which was delayed by 55 minutes due to rain.

Nieminen was accurate, served well and returned serve better than any of Ancic's opponents at the tournament to date.

It was the fifth time that Nieminen, 24, has reached an ATP tournament final in his career but the first time he has proved victorious.

- NZPA