Gorges humbles Wozniacki in Auckland
AUCKLAND: WORLD number 14 Julia Gorges won her third successive tournament as she blasted her way to a 6-4 7-6(4) victory over Caroline Wozniacki to seal the Auckland Classic title yesterday.
Gorges was rarely troubled by the world number three as she used a powerful service and blistering forehands that kept the Dane pinned deep and unable to extend rallies beyond a few shots.
The 29-year-old German, who has played at the Auckland tournament every year since her first visit in 2010, extended her winning streak to 14-matches stretching back to last year when she won in Moscow and then the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai.
“It feels amazing, but it’s not just about winning here but about my consistency over the last few months,” Gorges said after she became the first woman to be presented with a korowai, or Maori feather cloak, that will be awarded to every subsequent winner.
“I have become much more mature, that’s thanks to my team who have really changed my brain.”
Bad weather throughout the week wreaked havoc with the schedule in New Zealand’s largest city and both had been required to play their quarter-finals and semi-finals on Saturday.
Both players had made the final at the Auckland Tennis Centre before, with the German losing to Sloane Stephens in 2016, while Wozniacki lost to Venus Williams in 2015.
Gorges however stamped her intentions on the opening point when she smashed a forehand service return back at Wozniacki’s feet and broke to take a 1-0 lead that she never relinquished.
She sealed the first set after 35 minutes with her seventh ace and then broke Wozniacki again in the first game of the second set and continued to overpower the Dane.
Wozniacki had an opportunity to get back on serve in the fourth game when she had a break point, but Gorges simply pulled out another ace and consolidated her lead.
The Dane, however, was finally getting into the match and while she blew her second break point two games later she finally broke in the eighth to get back on serve and then took a 5-4 lead.
That was the only chance she had, however, as Gorges forced a tiebreak and then raced through it to seal the title after 91 minutes with another forehand winner.
“I have got a lot of matches under my belt and it was the type of preparation I hoped for,” Wozniacki said as she looked ahead to the Australian Open from 15-28 January.
“Hopefully it will be a great couple of weeks.”
Nick Kyrgios beat Ryan Harrison 6-4 6-2 in the Brisbane International final yesterday to clinch his maiden tour title on home soil and gain a big confidence boost ahead of the Australian Open.
Carrying a niggling knee injury, the mercurial Australian made a slow start and was forced to save five break points before he managed to carve out own his first break in the seventh game.
The 22-year-old claimed the first set before taking control of the match after his American opponent dropped serve at the start of the second set with a double fault.
Kyrgios broke the big-serving Harrison again in a sublime second set display to close out the match and seal his fourth career title.
He thrilled the crowd with his delightful touch at the net, while his ability to crank up the pressure with his groundstrokes threw Harrison off his game.
“I’ve got fond memories of Brisbane, played Davis Cup here and had a massive win over the US,” Kyrgios said.
“Coming here all week I felt right at home ... I love playing in front of you guys even though sometimes you may not see it that way, but I do.”
Kyrgios became the second Australian to lift the trophy in the tournament’s 10-year history after Lleyton Hewitt in 2014.
The triumph lifts him four spots to 17th in the world rankings ahead of the Australian Open.
Kyrgios has often struggled to produce his best tennis at the grand slams, but he goes into the Australian Open having made a strong start to the season, including a semi-final victory over world number three Grigor Dimitrov in Brisbane.
The men’s field at the first grand slam of the year has already been hit by the withdrawals of five-times runner-up Andy Murray and Japan’s former US Open finalist Kei Nishikori.
The participation of former champions Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka remains in doubt with the trio battling to overcome injury problems.
Ekaterina Makarova kept cool in the fierce Australian heat to upset the French Open champion and world number seven Jelena Ostapenko 7-6(3) 6-1 in the opening round of the Sydney International yesterday. Makarova, who reached the Australian Open semi-finals after stunning Serena Williams three years ago, rode an early break for a 5-3 lead and, even though her Latvian opponent got back to 5-5, raced away with the first set tiebreak.
Third seed Ostapenko, who also lost her opening match in Shenzhen last week, put up a fierce fight at the start of the second set but faded after losing her first service game. – Reuters