First WTA title: Chwalińska wins in Wuhan and rises to No. 11
The Pole comes from a set down to beat Sonay Kartal 2-6, 6-4, 6-2. Despite the defeat, the Briton climbs 121 places to No. 49.
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Maja Chwalińska has won the WTA 1000 tournament in Wuhan, her first title on the WTA Tour. The 25-year-old Pole, who beat her childhood friend Iga Świątek in the semi-finals, defeated Britain's Sonay Kartal 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Sunday. After losing the opening set she took the second with three breaks and pulled away in the decider with four games in a row.
Ranked 170th, Kartal was the lowest-ranked finalist at a WTA 1000 event, Reuters reports. She dominated the first set with powerful forehands, before the left-handed Chwalińska unsettled her with lobs, changes of direction and winners into the corners.
Chwalińska, a French Open finalist this year, earned 1,000 ranking points and $665,000 in prize money, according to Tennis365. In the new rankings she climbs eleven places to a career-high No. 11. Kartal jumps 121 places to No. 49 and is now the British No. 1. Elena Rybakina stays top ahead of Aryna Sabalenka; the top 10 is unchanged.