Goerges wins Classic title
Julia Goerges is the 2018 ASB Classic champion, defeating Caroline Wozniacki 6-4 7-6 in an hour and a half.
The match, which was the culmination of an elongated week, where bad weather stretched everyone’s patience, was one that lived up to the expectations.
It wasn’t a three-set thriller, but a good contest all the same with there being very little between the two players.
It was fitting that Wozniacki and Goerges got to the final.
Not only because they were the two top seeds, but because they’re both players who’ve given a lot to the Classic over the years.
Goerges first played in Aukland in 2010 and has been here every year since then.
Wozniacki first played at the Classic in 2009, when she was on her way up and has returned for the last four tournaments, when she’s been one of the most famous female sports personalities in the world.
Both players may have had little blips in their matches to the final, but they were the most dominant players over the rain disrupted week.
Goerges got a break in the first game of the final, with the match starting in blustery conditions.
Despite the wind, the quality of the match was high, but Wozniacki struggled to get the break back.
Goerges continued to keep her nose in front and with her first set point she served an ace, her seventh of the match.
The second set began in similar fashion, with Wozniacki getting broken in the first game, this time double faulting on break point.
In the eighth game, with Wozniacki running out of time, she managed to get the break back, helped by two double faults in a row by Goerges.
The set went to a tiebreak, with Goerges up 4-2 at the change of ends and a few minutes later with her first championship point she moved Wozniacki off court and as the Dane ran back, hit the winner behind her.
Goerges dropped her racquet to the ground and put her hands to her head, taking in the moment, where she’d at last won the title in Auckland.
For Goerges, the Classic remains an elusive tournament for her, with two final losses in Auckland, but like Goerges she’s sure to be back again.