Jesper de Jong can become the thirteenth Dutch tennis player ever to win an ATP title in singles on Sunday in Bastad. The North Hollander will face sixth-seeded Luciano Darderi in the final on Swedish clay.
The 25-year-old De Jong reached his first ATP final on Saturday by defeating Argentinian Camilo Ugo Carabelli (ATP-59) in two sets in the semi-finals in Bastad.
Darderi is the world number 55, and De Jong is 106th. If De Jong wins the final, he will be in the top 80 of the world rankings on Monday. His highest ranking ever is 87th position, in May of this year.
The 23-year-old Darderi has a reputation when it comes to finals against Dutch players. In April, the Italian was in the final in Marrakesh against Tallon Griekspoor and won in two sets. The 29-year-old Griekspoor already has three ATP titles to his name.
In total, there are twelve Dutch players with one or more ATP titles to their name. Tom Okker has the most titles (26), followed by Richard Krajicek (17) and Sjeng Schalken (9). De Jong is the seventeenth Dutchman ever to reach an ATP final.
The final between Jesper de Jong and Luciano Darderi starts on Sunday at 2:00 PM in Bastad.