Ekaterina Alexandrova has won her first WTA singles title after beating Elena Rybakina in straight sets in the final of the Shenzhen Open on Saturday.
The fifth seed won 6-2, 6-4 in 73 minutes to start her season and her forthcoming Australian Open preparations with a bang.
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The 25-year-old Alexandrova, who ranked a career-high of 34th in the world, collapsed to her knees after dismissing Rybakina, the seventh seed from Kazakhstan.
“I didn’t expect the first set to be so easy so I knew the second set would be so much tougher,” said Alexandrova, who is poised for the top 30 in the world.
“In the second set I think she played well but after I got the break to make it 4-4, she got a bit nervous.
“It feels amazing to win my first title, I don’t know what to say.
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“The first title is always special.”
Ekaterina Alexandrova, who shined in a WTA 125K event in Limoges, France last month, dropped former world number one Garbine Muguruza in the semi-finals in southern China.