Fabio Fognini defeated Leonardo Mayer 6-2, 6-4 on Sunday to win the Royal Guard Open in Vina Del Mar, Chile. It was his third career title, and the charismatic Italian has now won three of his last four clay-court events entered. He will surge even closer to the top 10 with the championship in Chile.

However, Fognini's recent success might well be highlighted in his semifinal victory over Nicolas Almagro on Saturday. After two fairly straightforward sets of tennis, the pair displayed one of the more entertaining sets witnessed in this young season. As we have become accustomed with Fognini, it is normal to expect the unexpected, and the Italian did not disappoint. After breaking a racket and Almagro's serve, he looked to be in control but could not capitalize on two match points when he served at 5-3. After a series of dazzling rallies, a dive onto the clay and amazing shot making, these two top clay-court players found themselves in a deciding tiebreak. There, Fognini finally cashed in, seemingly running down every shot from Almagro and turning defense into spectacular offense while exercising mental toughness down the stretch.

Some may question Fognini's unorthodox style and court mannerisms, which have worked for and against him, but the 26-year-old frequently thrives off of the quirks of his game, as evidenced in Chile. He tends to engage in gestures and theatrical conversations with himself, chair umpires and others during some of the more tense periods of a match, often as animated as a classical Roman drama.

Now that the Italian has risen to the highest ranking of his career at No. 14, it is fair to ponder whether he can ascend further. During his surge, we have seen two versions of Fognini. There is the version from Saturday night's compelling match when he gave fans a spectacular performance with uncanny ball-striking skill.  Then there is the version who has a history of appearing resigned to defeat, as illustrated by his match with Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open. There, Fognini appeared to go through the motions, more occupied with entertaining the crowd by tossing tennis balls, simulating sunbathing and displaying soccer skills. The result was a lopsided straight-sets victory for Djokovic in 1 hour and 33 minutes.

In last year’s Cincinnati Masters 1000 tournaments, Fognini looked disinterested in one of the worst performances of his career in a straight set defeat to Radek Stepanek. A month later in St. Petersburg, the hot headed Italian was on the verge of defeat to Michal Przysiezny when he engaged in a dispute with the umpire over a line call that led to a penalty. After an ensuing double fault, Fognini retired, walking off at 3-6, 3-5, 0-30.

Perhaps the unpredictability of Fognini’s style explains why he is among the fan favorites on tour. He is certainly entertaining. But the bigger question might be whether he can win on a surface other than clay.

All three of his titles so far have come on clay, and five of his six ATP finals. Fognini’s best performance at a Grand Slam was a quarterfinal appearance on the red clay at Roland Garros in 2011. In 2013, Fognini failed to advance past the quarterfinals on any surface other than his favorite. Still, he has seen his ranking improve from No. 47 at the beginning of last season to his current position of No. 14, playing 14 events on outdoor and indoor clay during this period.

With a bevy of clay-court tournaments lying ahead, prior to the French Open, the immediate future looks bright for Fognini. However, the true test will be in what lies ahead on faster surfaces once the season leaves clay behind. With any semblance of success on a surface outside of clay, the top 10 likely awaits. In any event, however, Fognini will continue to be a popular character and one of the more entertaining players on the tour.

That might be enough for the fiery Italian.  But it need not be.