CINCINNATI: Qualifier Caroline Garcia completed a dream week on Sunday at the ATP and WTA Cincinnati Masters with a 6-2, 6-4 title defeat of Petra Kvitova.
The French winner claimed her third Masters-level title — her 10th overall — after winning Wuhan and Beijing in a Chinese double five years ago.
Garcia followed the extraordinary template of Emma Raducanu, who won the US Open 11 months ago as a qualifier.
Number 35 Garcia, who fell on her back after clinching victory, maintained her lead on the Tour with a 27th match victory since June.
“Pure joy, just happiness,” she said. “Every single win is very important. It’s always very hard to describe
“It doesn’t happen so often and you have to really enjoy it. I’m grateful for this great week of tennis, and to win another title, it’s very special.”
She said expectations were low when she arrived for the qualification rounds.
“I was not that confident when I arrived, qualies were tough matches. I was really happy to be through and play in the main draw,” she said.
“Every match was a new challenge. I had to be focused on myself, on my game, what can I do, how I can be more aggressive, how can I improve.
“Just one day at a time I ended up here today on the final and now lifting the trophy.”
Kvitova, a double Wimblecon champion, was playing the 40th final of her career and looking for a 30th title.
Garcia set up match point against an opponent who needed off-court medical treatment by sending over her 11th ace of the afternoon.
The end came on the next point as Kvitova returned long.
“It was definitely not the result I wanted, but if someone had told me I would be in the final I would be very happy,” said Kvitova.
“I have to see the positive things: I could have been out in my first match,. I have to be proud of the 40th final of my career.
“I didn’t win the bigger trophy, but she really played very, very well.
“Caroline just, when she was down, she just served aces. She deserved to win.”
She added: “The big question right now is with my health (fitness), how everything will be in a couple of days, but still having a (practice) week before US Open will help me, I hope.”
Garcia repeated a victory over Kvitova from here seven years ago; she upset three top-10 players this week on her run to the trophy.
Garcia ran her season ace total to 286 with the victory in 96 minutes.
She is the fourth French player since 1980 with 10 or more WTA-level titles after Amelie Mauresmo (25), Mary Pierce (18) and Julie Halard (12).
Garcia saved all eight break points she faced while breaking Kvitova three times.
Garcia downs Kvitova to claim Cincinnati crown
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Garcia downs Kvitova to claim Cincinnati crown
- The French winner claimed her third Masters-level title — her 10th overall — after winning Wuhan and Beijing in a Chinese double five years ago
India tune up for Super Eights with hard-fought win over the Dutch
- India beat minnows Netherlands by narrow 17 runs after scoring impressive 193-6 from 20 overs
- India will face a tough South African side on Sunday at same venue in Ahmedabad Super 8 clash
AHMEDABAD: Defending champions India beat a spirited Netherlands team by 17 runs on Wednesday ahead of their meeting with South Africa in the Super Eights of the T20 World Cup.
India posted 193-6 and then kept the Dutch down to 176-7 with spinner Varun Chakravarthy returning figures of 3-14 in Ahmedabad to stay unbeaten in their four matches in Group A.
But a tough test awaits the co-hosts at the same venue on Sunday when they face South Africa, who emerged top of a potentially tricky Group D that featured New Zealand and Afghanistan.
India finish top of their group ahead of arch-rivals Pakistan, but need to fix holes in their batting including the form of opener Abhishek Sharma, who fell for his third straight duck in the tournament.
“I mean, you can’t say that we have ticked almost all the boxes, but even if you win, you learn something out of it,” skipper Suryakumar Yadav said.
“And we have learned a few areas. We’ll go back to the rooms, have a day off tomorrow, and have a chat on that.”
Abhishek was bowled on the third ball by off-spinner Aryan Dutt after India elected to bat first at the world’s biggest cricket stadium.
India were teetering at 110-4 before Shivam Dube hit a counter-attacking 66 and put on a key stand of 76 with Hardik Pandya (30).
“This is a World Cup and the game gets difficult sometimes,” player of the match Dube, who also took two wickets, told reporters.
“It was a little tough on the wicket, but yeah, this is the situation I love to bat and I was enjoying.”
DUBE EFFECT
Several batters got starts but failed to capitalize as Ishan Kishan fell for 18, Tilak Varma made 31 and Suryakumar contributed 34.
But Dube kept calm and hit a few lusty blows including two sixes and a four off off-spinner Colin Ackermann, reaching his fifty off 25 balls.
He and Pandya ensured India’s innings finished strongly although both were dismissed in the final over at the 110,000-capacity stadium, which had a turnout of over 68,000 fans.
Dube, who hit four fours and six sixes in his 31-ball knock, was caught by substitute fielder Tim van der Gugten on the boundary rope, with Pandya picking out a fielder in the deep off the final delivery by Logan van Beek.
Dutt returned impressive figures of 2-19 from his four overs.
In reply, the Dutch openers started cautiously before Max O’Dowd fell bowled for 20 off Chakravarthy and Pandya dismissed Michael Levitt, for 24.
Bas de Leede and Ackermann attempted to put the chase back on track in their stand of 43 but Chakravarthy broke through with his mystery spin.
He sent back Ackermann, for 23, and then bowled Dutt on the next ball, before the hat-trick was avoided by skipper Scott Edwards.
The ever-increasing run rate forced the Dutch to take risks and in the process lose their wickets as De Leede (33) fell to Dube and Jasprit Bumrah took down Edwards.
Zach Lion-Cachet (26) and Noah Croes, who made an unbeaten 25, hit regular boundaries in a desperate attempt to pull off a miracle but India had runs to play with and, despite two dropped catches in the last over, saw out the match.
