MIAMI (Reuters) – American Danielle Collins overcame fourth seed Elena Rybakina to win the final of the Miami Open 7-5 6-3 on Saturday and claim the title on home soil in her farewell season.
Collins won nearly 75 per cent of her first-serve points while claiming three of her seven break points on the way to victory in just over two hours after a stunning second set that left the crowd, including former Miami champion Andre Agassi breathless.
"This is my first WTA 1000 (title) and I worked so hard, it has taken me a bit longer than a lot of the other players," said 30-year-old Collins of her triumph.
"This whole week has been tough - I have played against some of the best players in the world, including being out here and sharing the court with Elena in the final," Collins said.
"Thank you to the fans. I've played a lot of tennis and in a few finals, but nothing compares close to this."
Collins, who said in January she would retire from tennis at the end of the season, was the surprise winner at the East Coast tournament, going one step further than her performance at the 2022 Australian Open when she reached the final.
She joins Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, three-time champion Venus Williams, eight-time winner Serena Williams and Sloane Stephens as the sixth American woman to claim the crown.
The unseeded American relied on her strength to hold the lead at the start, converting break points against Rybakina, who kept levelling the score, before closing out the opening set with a stunning cross-court backhand winner on the hour mark.
Rybakina refused to go quietly after her opponent took a 2-0 lead in the second set and worked her way back, capitalising on unforced errors to draw level at 3-3.
However, the American regained the advantage after saving three break points to take the seventh game with the former Wimbledon champion unable to recover.
Rybakina, who lost last year's Miami final to Petra Kvitova, missed Indian Wells this month with a gastrointestinal problem. She returned to the courts and put in a superb run, beating Belarusian Victoria Azarenka in three sets in the semi-finals, but admitted she did not expect to fight for the title.
"We didn't expect coming here to be in the final, to be honest, but it was a great two weeks. A lot of tough matches and great battles," the 24-year-old said.
Collins said she has achieved the goal she set herself for her final season on the WTA Tour by winning her first Masters 1000 title.
"I have always wanted to win every tournament that I have signed up for, but I do think that because it is my last year, I really wanted to try to win a Masters 1000 this year," Collins told reporters after winning the third WTA title of her career.
"That's really important to me. That's something that I talked a lot about with everybody close to me. I really wanted to make a push to be able to bring out my best tennis.
"I'm so glad that I have been able to figure out some of the physical things I have needed to do to peak at the right time and to feel like I'm ready to go. I certainly did that this tournament, but it has been a goal. So I got to tick it off the list."
Asked if she was reconsidering those plans, Collins said: "No, I'm not.
"I feel like all of these questions are coming from such a good place, because I feel like a lot of people would like to continue seeing me play well.
"But like I said, I have some health challenges, and with those health challenges, it makes things for me away from the court a little more difficult. I hope everyone can respect that. It's a very emotional and personal thing."
Collins, who is from Florida, thanked the home crowd for their vocal support throughout the match, saying: "It was just such a happy day for me on the court.
"Whether I won or lost, having the crowd support, I have never gotten to experience anything like it... It literally felt like I was playing in front of thousands of my best friends, I just - yeah, I'll never forget it."