By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday November 2, 2024

Diana Shnaider was ranked 108 in the world when she claimed her first title of the season, in January at Hua Hin.

Ten months later, she’ll rise to a career-high of No.12 after claiming her fourth title of 2024 in Hong Kong with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Great Britain’s Katie Boulter.

Shnaider, who won titles in Hua Hin, Bad Homburg, Budapest prior to this week, dropped just one set and played her best tennis over the weekend, as she surged past defending champion Leylah Fernandez in straight sets in the semis before completing her victory in a cool 71 minutes.



Now knocking on the door of the Top 10, Shnaider can set her sights on an encore in 2025.

"Next year, everyone will be getting ready, knowing my game, 'Oh she's tough,' stuff like that,” Shnaider said, according to the WTA. “But it's important for me to play against the best in the world.

“Even if there are a lot of losses, I'll be as positive as possible, just keep building my game, my mentality, my physical strength. There are a lot of things I can improve and achieve to be, say, a Top 10 player. It's not a rush, I'll have to be patient."

Golubic Takes Jiangxi Title

In China, Swiss Viktorija Golubic defeated Rebecca Sramkova 6-3, 7-5 for the Jiangxi Open title. The triumph marked Golubics’ first triumph on tour since 2016.

The World No.168, now 32, is the lowest-ranked champion on tour thus far in 2022.

"Persistence has paid off, and I'm really proud I've stayed on tour for that long and to be at that level for that long. I've worked hard to be at this level and even if we win or lose, or get titles or not, we still have the belief,” she said.”