The Czech qualifier is the new Heineken Open champion, after beating Adrian Mannarino 6-3 6-2 in a one sided-final yesterday. It wasn't a remarkable victory - Mannarino seemed frozen with nerves and had his worst game of the tournament - but it's been a remarkable week for Vesely.
He came through seven matches, becoming the first qualifier to win in Auckland since Danny Saltz in 1984. Saltz didn't go on to further success - the American never cracked the top 100 nor reached another final - but Vesely seems poised for big gains up the ATP ladder.
The 21-year-old looked near-indestructible at Stanley St, dropping just three service games across the tournament. He's got a serve like a tracer bullet, agile movement for a big man (1.98m) and a solid mental game under pressure. And he's left a trail of wreckage on his way, including highly-favoured seeds Ernests Gulbis and Kevin Anderson.
"It feels amazing to be an ATP champion," said Vesely. "It's not something everyone is able to achieve. [Now] I can really see it is possible to play with the big guys and that is really important for me for the future."
There can sometimes be false dawns but it doesn't feel that way with Vesely. He has a game that adapts well across surfaces - he beat Gael Monifils at Wimbledon last year and is also comfortable on clay. He was the ATP's Star of Tomorrow at the end of 2013, after rising from outside the top 250 to be the youngest player in the top 100, but struggled with the new level of expectation in 2014.
"Last year was tough ... totally something new," he said. "But it gave me a lot of experience and I think this year could be the year. I don't want to say numbers but I see now that it can go well and we'll see where I finish the year."
Vesely was a disappointed man after arriving from Chennai last week, as his ranking left him one place outside the main draw.
"I was frustrated after not getting in. I was first out here and first out in Sydney. I was hoping someone would pull out but no one did."
He toiled away on the outside courts, not even sighted on centre court until Wednesday, when he faced Gulbis.
"I was going match-by-match," Vesely said. "After I played Gulbis, I thought, 'this is something special you have achieved - it's already a successful week'. [Then] it was a surprise to beat [Anderson] on Friday." Yesterday was a relative stroll, in a disappointing 66-minute climax to an underwhelming week. Mannarino, who had been fortunate to face two 'lucky losers' on his run to the final, saved his worst for last. He broke Vesely in the first game of the match but didn't get close again, struggling to hold serve and dogged by faults.
"I'm really upset by the way I have played - maybe I should drink a bit," said Mannarino, in a press conference that felt like a wake. "I didn't expect to play my best tennis in a final but I got tight in the key moments. Today was not my day. I just have to deal with it."
The 26-year-old Mannarino admitted he struggled with the occasion, his first ATP level final after 10 years on the tour.
"It was a different feeling, [attention] going on me. [After the semifinal] I received maybe 60 texts and so many people called me."
- Herald on Sunday
