BASTAD, SWEDEN— Tar Heel alum Nicholas Monroe captured his maiden ATP WORLD doubles championship on Sunday, continuing his steady progress up through the professional tennis ranks.

Pairing with German Simon Stadler, Monroe defeated the singles winner, Carlos Berlocq from Argentina and his partner, Albert Ramos from Spain by a score of 6-2, 3-6, 10-3 in the final.

Along their way to the title, Monroe and Stadler defeated the top-seeded team in straight sets.

The win bumps Monroe up to a career high world doubles ranking. As of Monday, he was ranked 60th in the ATP standings.

First pairing together in February, 2012, Monroe and Stadler found success from the very beginning, winning the ITF Pro Circuit Challenger in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Later that year, the two also won ATP Futures events in Milan, Italy and Medellin, Colombia both on red clay. And now, the pair has made it to the upper echelon of the sport.

Most recently, Monroe and Stadler won a round in the main draw at Wimbledon, a grand slam event. In March, they won an ATP Futures title in Prostejov, Czech Republic and reached their first ATP WORLD final in February at the Buenos Aires, Argentinian Open.

A 2004 UNC graduate, Monroe earned All-America honors and was given the Arthur Ashe Mideast Region Leadership/Sportsmanship award during his career at Chapel Hill.