WTA Mumbai Open Champion Darja Semenistaja.
| Photo Credit: Kamesh Srinivasan
Darja Semenistaja saved a match point before registering a memorable 5-7, 7-6(6), 6-2 victory against Storm Hunter in the final of the L&T Mumbai Open WTA tournament at the CCI on Sunday.
The 21-year-old Semenistaja was at her fighting best right through the two-hour 30-minute contest. It was her 16th singles title, and the second in India after the triumph in Bengaluru last month.
For a large part of the match, it was World No. 3 doubles player Hunter who recovered every time she was down.
However, leading 6-5 in the second set tie-break, Hunter failed to seal the deal. And when she lost the next two points, Semenistaja broke the door open, smashing a forehand down-the-line winner to force a decider.
Semenistaja ensured that there was no further ‘Storm’ as she cruised through losing just two games.
For someone who had recovered from 3-5 down in the first set and had survived four set points before winning it, the 29-year-old Hunter couldn’t find a second wind.
The champion collected $15,000 and 125 WTA points while the runner-up got $8,000 and 81 points.
In the doubles final, Dalila Jakupovic and Sabrina Santamaria stepped it up in both sets to record a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Arianne Hartono and Prarthana Thombare.
The 32-year-old Dalila had lost the singles final to Aryna Sabalenka in 2017 at the same venue.
Prarthana, who made it to her maiden WTA final after having won 26 doubles titles in the ITF circuit, kept the home interest alive by forging a solid partnership with the free-stroking Arianne.
The doubles champions won $5000 and 125 points. The runners-up got $2,500 and 81 points.
The results (finals):
Singles: Darja Semenistaja (Lat) bt Storm Hunter (Aus) 5-7, 7-6(6), 6-2.
Doubles: Dalila Jakupovic (Slo) & Sabrina Santamaria (USA) bt Arianne Hartono (Ned) & Prarthana Thombare 6-4, 6-3.
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