Elena Rybakina finds form with Strasbourg title, Joint wins first WTA tournament
Elena Rybakina finds form with Strasbourg title, Joint wins first WTA tournament
Elena Rybakina secured her first WTA title for more than a year with a three-set win over Russian Liudmila Samsonova in the Strasbourg final on Saturday.
The Kazakh world number 12, who faces Argentinian qualifier Julia Riera in the French Open first round on Monday, clinched a 6-1, 6-7 (1/7), 6-1 success.
Rybakina has slipped down the rankings in recent months and was playing in her first final since winning the Stuttgart title last April.
But the former Wimbledon champion showed signs of a return to form against the 19th-ranked Samsonova, cruising to an ultimately comfortable victory despite an erratic second-set tie-break.
Australian teenager Maya Joint claimed the first WTA title of her career on Saturday with a comfortable victory over Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian in the final of the clay-court event in Rabat.
The 19-year-old, who also won the doubles title in Morocco, eased to a 6-3, 6-2 win to secure the trophy without dropping a set all week.
Joint benefited from 36 unforced errors and five double-faults from Cristian who has never won a tournament on the WTA Tour.
“It’s been a fantastic week, even though the conditions today were difficult for both of us,” said Joint who will face compatriot Ajla Tomljanovic in the French Open first round next week.
