16-year-old junior No. 1 wins third pro title at W60 Shenzhen
The 16-year-old Dane Clara Tauson has been on a stellar run so far in 2019, winning J1 Traralgon and the Australian Open to become junior world no. 1 and conquering back-to-back pro events in Monastir and Shenzhen. Playing above W15 level for the first time in her short pro career, super talented Dane went all the way in China to secure the third professional title and earn the first WTA points after significant changes that hit professional tennis at the end of 2018. Shenzhen was only the seventh pro event for Clara in a career and she has proven her quality once again, scoring five wins over more experienced rivals for the biggest success so far.
Clara kicked off the campaign against En Shuo Liang with a 6-1, 6-2 win in 53 minutes, facing just one break point and scoring five on the other hand to march into the second round. Jana Cepelova made Tauson run for her money in the next match, with the youngster earning a 5-7, 7-6, 6-1 victory in two and a half hours, suffering five breaks but grabbing seven to cross the finish line first. The Slovak won three straight games from 4-5 down to take the opener 7-5, opening a 3-0 lead in set number two with a double break and serving for the win at 5-4. A teenager gave her best to stay in the match, breaking back despite being two points away from defeat before Jana played another excellent return game to move 6-5 up.
With her back pushed against the wall for the second time, Tauson managed to extend the encounter with a break in the last moment, setting up a tie break that she won 7-5 to stay in contention and force a decider. There, she was the only player on the court, scoring breaks in games one, five and seven to race towards the finish line and limit the time spent on the court at least a little bit. In the quarters, Clara took down the 7th seed Magdalena Frech 7-5, 0-6, 6-3 in an hour and 42 minutes, giving serve away thrice and converting all four break chances to advance and reach the semis. The 8th seed Jia-Jing Lu stood between Tauson and the place in the final and the Dane was forced to work hard once again, notching a 6-3, 7-6 win in an hour and 51 minutes.
Clara won seven points more than Jia-Jing, taking the opener with a break in game six and trailing 5-3 in set number two before bouncing back, reaching the tie break where she saved three set points to prevail 13-11. Competing in her fourth pro final, Clara defeated the 6th seed Fangzhou Liu 6-4, 6-3 in an hour and 23 minutes to celebrate the title, suffering three breaks but erasing that deficit with six great return games to cross the finish line first and wrap up the week with a trophy in her hands. The Dane netted a forehand in the second game to suffer an early setback although she was back on the positive side of the scoreboard with a forehand winner for a break at love in the very next game that gave her a lot of confidence.
Nonetheless, Fangzhou broke again in the fourth game with a well-constructed attack and a forehand winner, staying in front for a few minutes until Tauson broke back to keep the pace. The sixth game was very important as well and the youngster repelled a break point to level the score at 3-3, securing a break in game nine and firing a service winner in the next game for a 6-4 in 50 minutes. The youngster made another big step towards the finish line with a break at 1-1 in the second set but Lu broke back immediately, moving 3-2 up with a hold at love before Clara shifted into a higher gear to turn the tables. She won 16 of the next 18 points to rattle off four straight games and cross the finish line, opening a 5-3 advantage with a backhand down the line winner in game eight and wrapping up the win with a break at love a few minutes later that made her a crowned champion.
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2HHbiXj
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