Spain's Almagro wins Nice clay tourney

NICE, France, May 21 (UPI) -- Third-seeded Nicolas Almagro of Spain beat Victor Hanescu in the championship match of the Nice Open in France Saturday.

Almagro topped the Romanian 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-3 for his third title of the year and set the stage for a possible run at the French Open.

The French Open, which begins Sunday, is played on clay, and all of Almagro's championships this year have come on clay.

Almagro, ranked 12th in the world, has beaten Hanescu three times this year and is 4-0 against him lifetime.