By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Sunday March 8, 2020
Elina Svitolina fought past first-time WTA finalist Marie Bouzkova in three hours, 7-5 4-6 6-4, to claim her fourteenth WTA title out of just 17 finals.
“I think it was a very high-level match," Svitolina told reporters, after the match. "We’ve both been playing good, we were fighting, and there were no easy games.”
For her efforts Svitolina finds herself inside the WTA’s Top 5 once again, at No.5 in the world. She claims her first WTA title since lifting the trophy at the WTA Finals Singapore in 2018.
"It’s another step towards my goals, and I’m moving in the right direction. I’m happy that it’s going the right way,” she said according to WTATennis.com.
In a wild encounter that featured 32 total break points, Svitolina won 73 percent of her first serve points and saved 14 of 18 break points.
Bouzkova, playing in her first WTA final, started strongly. She earned seven break points in Svitolina’s first service game and eventually broke out to own a 2-0 lead.
But Svitolina fought hard to get on level terms and eventually broke to clinch the set in the 12th game, 7-5.
Bouzkova scored the only break of the second set and saved all three break points she faced, but Svitolina broke three times on six opportunities in the final set. Even though Bouzkova denied her as she served for the championship at 5-3, Svitolina broke to clinch the title in the next game.
Nevertheless it was a great week for the 21-year-old Czech. She makes her Top 50 debut in Monday’s WTA rankings at 47 in the world.