(Rank/Seed)
9/1 Wozniacki claimed her 1st title of the year in beating German (57/-) Beck 62 62, who was playing her 1st WTA final. Wozniacki hadn't won a title in a year exactly since winning the Kremlin Cup 2012 and now goes into the WTA Championships as a first alternate!
Wozniacki had a tough week, beating Minella 63 76(2), Niculescu 63 62, Jovanovski 63 36 63 and (15/3) Lisicki 64 64 to reach her 2nd final of the year. She had been a runner up here in 2008.
Beck had also worked hard, beating Pironkova 62 62, Safarova 62 46 64, saving match point in an epic 3 hour+ contest against Piter 63 67(3) 76(5) and then benefiting from Voegele's retirement up 75 10. It was the 19 year olds first meeting with the Dane and a marked improvement from her second round exit here last year.
First Set
Beck initially troubled Wozniacki, breaking her first two service games with solid play. Though Wozniacki broke back immediately each time, it was evident that Beck believed she could win. She was as solid as Wozniacki from the back, but was looking to take risks with her forehand which were already paying off. The rallies were long and intense but after a close sixth game where Beck missed several game points, Wozniacki broke clear in winning 6 straight games from 1-2 down.
Second Set
Beck hung in well to begin with, breaking Wozniacki to get back on serve at 3-2. However, the greater experience of the 20 time titlist began to show as she began to dominate all aspects of the court. Beck's concentration faded quickly towards the end behind a slew of unforced errors. Wozniacki won the last 11 points of the match to claim her 21st title.
Monday, 21 October 2013
Halep stops Stosur
(Rank/Seed)
18/5 Halep defeated (19/7) Stosur 76(1) 62 to claim the Kremlin Cup in Moscow, her 5th title of the year in as many finals played. Only Williams has won more titles this year!
Halep took advantage of a field which saw a mass exodus of top 10 players in light of their recent qualification for the WTA Championships. Errani, Kvitova, Jankovic and Kerber all pulled out just before the tournament got underway. Halep dropped a mere 7 games in besting Rybarikova 62 retired, Kleybanova 61 61 and Pavlyuchenkova 62 61 en route to the final in only her second appearance here, having lost in last year's second round.
Stosur came in fresh off a second title of the year in Osaka last week, the first time in her career she'd ever won at least a couple of titles in one year. She extended her winning streak to 9 matches in beating tough former top 20 players Kanepi 63 61, Cornet 64 61 and former Grand Slam champions (14/4) Ivanovic 75 64 and Kuznetsova 62 64. Having just missed out in the final last year and leading Halep 3-1 in their head to head, she was the favourite.
1st Set
Halep's early break advantage didn't last long as Stosur levelled at 3-3. From there, neither player broke serve. Halep was generally dictating the play, often hitting behind Stosur to her backhand and was returning superbly. However, Stosur played fabulously on break points, saving 12 of them going into the tiebreak. Suddenly though, Stosur had a lapse of concentration and Halep took advantage as she dominated the breaker, putting all of Stosur's hard work to stay in the set to waste.
2nd Set
Though Stosur managed to break in the first game, she appeared dejected as Halep broke back before forging into a 4-1 lead. Halep's backhand down the line was particularly lethal and Stosur ran out of answers. Halep beat Stosur for the 2nd time this year, following her win in Cincinnati and has won a title on all 4 surfaces this year; clay, grass, outdoor and indoor hard.
18/5 Halep defeated (19/7) Stosur 76(1) 62 to claim the Kremlin Cup in Moscow, her 5th title of the year in as many finals played. Only Williams has won more titles this year!
Halep took advantage of a field which saw a mass exodus of top 10 players in light of their recent qualification for the WTA Championships. Errani, Kvitova, Jankovic and Kerber all pulled out just before the tournament got underway. Halep dropped a mere 7 games in besting Rybarikova 62 retired, Kleybanova 61 61 and Pavlyuchenkova 62 61 en route to the final in only her second appearance here, having lost in last year's second round.
Stosur came in fresh off a second title of the year in Osaka last week, the first time in her career she'd ever won at least a couple of titles in one year. She extended her winning streak to 9 matches in beating tough former top 20 players Kanepi 63 61, Cornet 64 61 and former Grand Slam champions (14/4) Ivanovic 75 64 and Kuznetsova 62 64. Having just missed out in the final last year and leading Halep 3-1 in their head to head, she was the favourite.
1st Set
Halep's early break advantage didn't last long as Stosur levelled at 3-3. From there, neither player broke serve. Halep was generally dictating the play, often hitting behind Stosur to her backhand and was returning superbly. However, Stosur played fabulously on break points, saving 12 of them going into the tiebreak. Suddenly though, Stosur had a lapse of concentration and Halep took advantage as she dominated the breaker, putting all of Stosur's hard work to stay in the set to waste.
2nd Set
Though Stosur managed to break in the first game, she appeared dejected as Halep broke back before forging into a 4-1 lead. Halep's backhand down the line was particularly lethal and Stosur ran out of answers. Halep beat Stosur for the 2nd time this year, following her win in Cincinnati and has won a title on all 4 surfaces this year; clay, grass, outdoor and indoor hard.
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