Monday, 11 January 2016

Tennis:Sloane Stephens claims second WTA title in Auckland

Stephens celebrates her final victory over Goerges
Sloane Stephens has claimed her second WTA title after winning two matches in a day to triumph at the ASB Classic in Auckland.

Stephens returned in the morning to complete a 6-2 2-6 6-3 semi-final win over Caroline Wozniacki, in a match which had been interrupted by rain on Friday night.

And, after a brief rest, the fifth seed returned to the court to defeat Julia Goerges of Germany 7-5 6-2 in the final.

Stephens had never previously won a set against former world No 1 Wozniacki but quickly corrected that, having resumed with a 5-2 lead.

Wozniacki hit back to take the second set but Stephens regained control in set three, cheered on by her mother Sybil Smith and her new coach Kamau Murray.

The first set of the final was tight and Stephens had to fight off break points on her serve before breaking herself at the third opportunity in the 11th game.

She successfully served out the set and then broke twice to comfortably win set two, as the unforced errors began to flow from the racket of Goerges.

The German adopted her usual attacking approach and sent down six aces but also finished with 33 unforced errors.

Stephens, who had beaten Britain's Naomi Broady in the quarter-finals, said: "To win a tournament is amazing and I'm just really happy. It's definitely been a tough week.

"I've played some really tough players and to play this morning and come back and play the final - it's the first time I've done that.

"I was really pleased with the way I was able to hold myself together and win this afternoon.

"It was nice for mum to see me win a tournament and now Kamau is really going to think he's like Coach of the Year!

"We've just started and done well together, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the year and excited with what we have in store together."

The Hobart International, where Stephens was expected to play on Sunday, said in a statement on Saturday that she had withdrawn due to a viral illness.

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