Radek Stepanek became the oldest winner of the ATP Washington Classic since Jimmy Connors in 1988, the 32-year-old Czech upsetting French top seed Gael Monfils 6-4, 6-4 in Sunday’s championship match. Stepanek won his first ATP title in 2 1/2 years and the fifth of his career, rushing the net to control the tempo and frustrate the fleet-footed Frenchman to claim the $264,000 top prize at the $1.4 million US Open hardcourt tuneup. “It’s a great satisfaction for me,” Stepanek said. “It’s great to still be able to compete with the young guns.” Stepanek, the oldest player in the world’s top 100, became the ATP’s oldest champion since France’s Fabrice Santoro at 35 at Newport in 2008, Washington’s eldest winner since a 35-year-old Connors and a top-30 player after starting the week ranked 54th.
Stepanek shocks Monfils in final
