Ernests Gulbis is finally reaching his potential for greatness; let's hope it lasts.

DELRAY BEACH, U.S. — Ernests “The Gull” Gulbis made history this weekend by becoming the first Latvian to ever win a major tennis event, beating Croatia’s Ivo Karlović 6-2, 6-3.

The victory capped off a phenomenal fortnight for the Latvian, particularly the last week, with the Latvian not dropping a set on his way to winning the Delray Beach tournament. He has finally shown signs that his days of erratic performances are behind him and that this really could be the year for him to make his breakthrough.

Gulbis let his intentions be known early, proving that it was no fluke that he had made the final by breaking Karlović’s serve twice on the way to taking the first set 6-3. Gulbis is known on tour for relying on a powerful serve, as is his opponent Karlović who served up five aces in the first set. However, on this occasion, the Latvian was instead showcasing other facets of his game, showing patience in waiting for Karlović to make mistakes, rather than trying to force them, something that has been a key factor in Gulbis’ recent run of fine form.

Again in the second set Gulbis wasted no time at gaining the upperhand, breaking Karlović on the Croat’s second trip to the service line. Gulbis was putting the Croat under great pressure, pushing him to break point on every one of his second set service games. The pressure finally told, with Karlović only able to hold on to his serve twice with Gulbis wrapping up the game 6-3, 6-2.

The victory will see Gulbis rocket up the world rankings and should all but guarantee him direct entry into the three remaining majors this year. Fans of Gulbis will be just hoping this has not been a glimmer of the Latvian’s talent, but more of a long-term fixture.

This article is free to view. To read Baltic Reports’ subscription-only articles, click here.