(Photo credit score: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports)
Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia battled China’s Qinwen Zheng for 2 hours and 51 minutes earlier than rising with the WTA Elite Trophy championship on Sunday in Zhuhai, China.
Haddad Maia, the eighth seed, topped the seventh-seeded Zheng 7-6 (11), 7-6 (4) within the longest tour-level straight-sets match this season. Yuan Yue wanted 2:49 to defeat Marie Bouzkova within the Seoul quarterfinals.
Zheng had a 9-1 benefit in aces, but in addition had extra double faults, 6-2. Zheng saved 5 of eight break factors in opposition to two of 5 for Haddad Maia.
It was the primary assembly between Zheng — who noticed her eight-match win streak finish — and Haddad Maia, who didn’t drop a set within the occasion. Zheng had received the occasion in Zhengzhou, China, two weeks in the past.
Haddad Maia not solely earned her third WTA Tour profession singles victory on Sunday, she additionally received the doubles title as the highest seed with Veronika Kudermetova of Russia. They defeated No. 2 seeds Miyu Kato of Japan and Aldila Sutjiadi of Indonesia, 6-3, 6-3.
WTA Finals Cancun
No. 1 seed Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus practically opened the season finale with a double-bagel victory, settling for a 6-0, 6-1 rout of No. 8 seed Maria Sakkari of Greece within the round-robin opener in Mexico.
Sabalenka received 21 of 26 first-service factors (81.0 %), saved all 5 break factors she confronted and capitalized on Sakkari’s 19 unforced errors. Sabalenka led 6-0, 5-0 earlier than Sakkari fended off three match factors to win her first and solely sport.
In Sunday’s solely different match, fifth seed Jessica Pegula defeated Kazakh fourth seed Elena Rybakina 7-5, 6-2. The American transformed 5 of seven break-point alternatives whereas saving 5 of the seven she confronted.
The match’s group stage cut up the highest eight gamers on the earth into two teams of 4. After the spherical robin, the 2 gamers with the very best data in every group will advance to a single-elimination bracket.
Monday will see the opposite group start play, with Poland’s Iga Swiatek going through Czech Republic’s Marketa Vondrousova within the 2-versus-7 match and American Coco Gauff battling Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur within the 3-versus-6.
–Field Level Media