Eighteen-year-old Elina Svitolina of Ukraine won her first WTA title at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Balewadi yesterday beating Japanese veteran Kimiko Date-Krumm of Japan 6-2, 6-3 in an hour and 20 minutes to clinch the USD 125,000 Royal Indian Open.
The veteran Japanese seemed tired towards the closing stages of the encounter and eventually succumbed to Svitolina’s big serves and powerful ground strokes. The Ukraine teen walked away with the winner’s prize money of USD 20,000 and 160 WTA ranking points. Date-Krumm earned 117 WTA points and a purse of USD 11,000 for her effort.
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Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina with the Royal Indian Open trophy yesterday
In the first set, Svitolina broke Date-Krumm in the third and the fifth game. In Set Two, the duo exchanged breaks in first and second game, before Svitlolina broke Date-Krum in the fifth and ninth to emerge victorious. The former 2010 junior French Open winner served six aces en route to her maiden win.
“It was great to play here against former Top 10 players like Date-Krumm and Andrea Petkovic. This win is special as it’s my first WTA title and marks my arrival to the professional circuit. I am glad that to end the year on a high,” said Svitolina.
Meanwhile, 42-year-old Date-Krumm admitted Svitolina’s deception and powerplay was too good. “It was just not my day. I was feeling tired and my body was not moving well. She has a big serve and played smartly, and that worked in her favour,” said Date-Krumm.
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