Top-seed Kerber beats Ivanovic in Linz final
Angelique Kerber beat Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 7-6 (6) at the Generali Ladies on Sunday.
LINZ (AP) - Top-seeded Angelique Kerber won her first WTA title of the season and third overall by defeating two-time former champion Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 7-6 (6) at the Generali Ladies on Sunday.
It was Kerber s third final of the year after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Monterrey in April and to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in Tokyo two weeks ago. The 10th-ranked German improved her record in finals to 3-5.
"This is an incredible feeling," said Kerber, who qualified for the season-ending WTA Championships by reaching the semifinals this week. "This victory means a lot to me. I will go to the masters with lots of confidence now."
Kerber didn t initially intend to play in Linz but was given a late wildcard entry to replace Kvitova after the former Wimbledon champion pulled out with a back injury.
The former top-ranked Ivanovic, who won the event in 2008 and 10, appeared in her first final since winning her 11th career title in Bali, Indonesia, in November 2011.
"It was a real close final," said Kerber, who missed three match points at 5-3 in the second set. "I became a bit twitchy toward the end. My thoughts were elsewhere during these match points. Later I managed to focus on each point again."
Ivanovic battled back from two breaks down to level at 4-4 in the opening set before dropping her serve for a third time.
The third-seeded Serb made another comeback in the second set. After denying Kerber victory at 5-3, she missed two set points while leading 6-5 and two more in the tiebreaker as the German reeled off four straight points to close out the victory.
"I was too passive and didn t find my rhythm," Ivanovic said. "I got my chances but I couldn t take them."
