WTA Stuttgart Open: Angelique Kerber defends title; Martina Hingis-Sania Mirza fall in final
It took some time for Angelique Kerber to get used to her newfound status as a Grand Slam champion after her big Australian Open win in January. But the German is finally back in the winners’ circle.
On Sunday, the 28-year-old successfully defended her Porsche Tennis Grand Prix crown at Stuttgart with a 6-4, 6-0 defeat of qualifier and compatriot Laura Siegemund in the final.
In doubles, just when the top seeds Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis were looking to get back to their winning ways, their run was cut short in the final by the second-seeded French team of Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia, 6-2, 1-6, 6-10.
First successful title defence of Kerber’s career
Kerber’s opponent, Siegemund had been on a giant-killing spree all week and had accounted for three top-10 players that included the top seed Agnieszka Radwanska in the semi-finals. She did not even drop a set in her seven consecutive victories en route to reaching her maiden WTA final.
Also read: WTA Stuttgart: Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis reach final
It looked like the inspired qualifier was ready to continue in the same fashion when the summit showdown began on Sunday. Refusing to be intimidated by the occasion or by the accomplishments of the girl on the opposite side of the net, the Stuttgart native cruised to a 3-0 lead in the first ever all-German final of this tournament.
It was then that the German No. 1 started to be more aggressive and a dodgy drop shot from the World No. 71 allowed her to break back for 2-3 and then level the scoreline.
But Siegemund had other ideas. Her swift movement and her forays into the net helped her to break the World No. 3 once more for a 4-2 lead.
Unfortunately for all her efforts, the lower-ranked German soon started feeling the effects of her exertions this past week. And she would not manage to win a single more game afterwards.
With a searing crosscourt forehand, the left-hander Kerber broke back and her confidence soared as the match went on. She grabbed the first set 6-4.
The second set began with a marathon game on Siegemund’s serve which ended with Kerber breaking her for 1-0. That pretty much sealed the deal.
The qualifier opted for a lengthy medical time-out to treat her left hip after going down 0-2 but that did not change her fortunes. There was no respite from Kerber’s onslaught as the Australian Open champion won the next four games to clinch her second title of the season.
This is the first time that she has managed to successfully defend a title in her entire career.
She finished the match with 16 winners and 9 unforced errors.
Second consecutive tournament win for Mladenovic and Garcia
In the doubles final, the French pair of Garcia and Mladenovic were the bigger favourites based on current form. They had come to this tournament on the back of winning the claycourt title at Charleston just two weeks ago.
The top seeds Mirza and Hingis, on the other hand, had stumbled early in each of their last three assignments at Doha, Indian Wells and Miami. This was the first time that they reached a WTA final since emerging triumphant at St. Petersburg back in February.
The Indo-Swiss pair, however, were the ones who made the more confident start of the two. They saved all three break points and broke their opponents twice to take the first set 6-2.
The undeterred Mladenovic and Garcia soon turned the tables in the second set. Serving at a 73%, they stormed back to make in-roads into the top seeds’ serve twice and quickly pocketed the set 6-1.
In the match tie-break, the Wimbledon, US Open and Australian Open champions served a 100% of first serves but were still edged by the French combine, who were the more aggressive team of the two.