Fourth seeded Maria Sharapova slammed past Jelena Jankovic to win the title at the Western & Southern Open final on Sunday. She had to go past Jancovic’s seven break point chances in the last set before claiming her second title for the season after a final score of 4-6, 7-6 (3), 6-3.
Jancovic did not make it easy for Sharapova. Although Sharapova started strong, Jancovic broke the opponent three times in a row and won one set after Sharapova double faulted. She managed to grab the third set which started with six straight breaks before Sharapova managed to go up 4-3. Jancovic double faulted twice to lose the game on the next serve, before Sharapova got the chance to close.
“That’s pretty much it, putting five points together that was well-played,’” Sharapova said, referring to the tiebreaker where she won the last five points to level the match.
The win is a refreshing change for Sharapova since she had earlier lost to Kim Clijsters in the previous Cincinnati finals.
“It’s been a great year for me so far,” Sharapova added. “It can always be better or worse. I am definitely proud I have gone further than last year, after the disappointing loss here last year.”
The loss extends Jankovic’s losing streak, which has now lasted for 17 months. Her last championship win was in Indian Wells in 2010, although she won in the title in Cincinnati in 2009.