Kvitova beats Bouchard to win Wuhan Open

Petra Kvitova has overpowered Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets to win the inaugural WTA Wuhan Open in China for her third title victory of the year.

World No.3 Petra Kvitova overcame Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets on Saturday to win the inaugural WTA Wuhan Open in China for her third title victory of the year.

The Wimbledon champion was at her ruthless best, defeating the Canadian 6-3 6-4 - a result which confirmed her place in next month's WTA Finals in Singapore, the season-ending finale featuring the world's top eight women players.

The final of the premier-ranking tournament was a rematch between the two players who contested the Wimbledon final, and Kvitova reproduced in Wuhan the determination she displayed in London, where she won 6-3 6-0.

The Czech player broke the world No.9 in the second game and maintained her 3-0 lead to clinch the first set.

Kvitova then took an early lead in the second set, breaking serve in the first game before Bouchard appeared to hurt her middle finger on her left hand which was bandaged later in the game.

The third seed then advanced to 5-2 before Bouchard attempted a comeback.

The 20-year-old sixth seed had three break points against Kvitova in the eighth game, and while her opponent clawed her way back into contention with some powerful serving, Bouchard took the game.

The new poster girl for the WTA then took the next game, but Kvitova's strength at the serve wrapped up the set 6-4.

"It went well for me, for sure. I start(ed) pretty well," said Kvitova.

"The first game I (broke) her was very important for my confidence. I knew that I had to play a little bit more aggressive than I played the matches before."

She added: "I (needed) to play a similar game as in Wimbledon, very aggressively going for the shots."

The victory was Kvitova's third over Bouchard in the three games they have previously played.

Kvitova crushed her opponent in 55 minutes at Wimbledon, the shortest final ever at the tournament. Bouchard was also defeated when the pair met in Toronto last year.

Victory was sweet for Kvitova, who has enjoyed a return to consistency at Wuhan after a poor run in the North American swing.

She won her second tournament of the year at New Haven, but crashed out of the US Open in the third round to 145th-ranked Serbian qualifier Aleksandra Krunic.

Kvitova then lost to Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, her quarter-final opponent in Wuhan, in her opening match in Cincinnati.

The Wuhan Open, in the central province of Hubei, features the world's top 20 women players, with the exception of recently-retired local hero Li Na.


Share

3 min read

Published

Updated


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world