Kiki Bertens won her third WTA Tour singles title of the season on Sunday and denied Ajla Tomljanovic her career first with a 7-6 (2), 4-6, 6-2 win over the Croatian-born Australian.
The second-seeded Bertens, who won the final six games of the match, was a service break down twice in the first set, but fought back to level and then dominated the tiebreaker thanks to a strong first serve.
Bertens was behind 2-0 in the second set before coming back to take a 4-3 lead with a break, but Tomljanovic broke in the 10th game when Bertens netted a forehand, giving the Australian the second set.
Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia returns a shot to Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan during their semifinal match at the Korea Open tennis championship in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, Sept. 22, 2018. (AP PhotoAhn Young-joon)
Tomljanovic again took a 2-0 lead in the final set, hitting a blistering forehand to the back of the court on break point that Bertens could only watch streak past her. But the Dutch player again staged a comeback, not dropping another game.
The consolation prize for Tomljanovic, who ended Hsieh Su-wei's eight-match winning streak in the semifinals, will be a big jump in the rankings.
Tomljanovic, who has lost all three WTA finals she has contested, was ranked in the 900s nearly three years ago due to persistent shoulder problems. But she has moved steadily up in the rankings and is projected to reach at least No. 44 next week, the first time she has been inside the top 50.
The No. 12-ranked Bertens had dropped only one set going in to the final, while Tomljanovic needed three sets in each of her previous matches.
More AP sports: https://apnews.com/tag/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Blowing late leads has become a hallmark of Manchester United's season.
Erik ten Hag hopes that changes when Liverpool comes to Old Trafford on Sunday. United is still clinging to hopes of a Champions League spot, despite a stunning 4-3 loss to Chelsea on Thursday night.
United first gave away the lead in the 10th minute of stoppage time at Stamford Bridge and then the game a minute later — both goals coming from Cole Palmer.
That followed a blown lead in a 1-1 draw at Brentford last Saturday. United had just recovered from celebrating Mason Mount's goal in the 96th when Kristoffer Ajer tied it three minutes later.
“We can beat the best teams in the Premier League,” Ten Hag said. “When you beat them in the Premier League, you can do it across Europe, but we need to learn how you win games ... how you bring games over the line and get the three points. We have to step up."
Dropping five points in the past two games is “very expensive,” he added.
“Games are running out. We know that and we have to catch up and we are now many points behind,” Ten Hag said. “It will be difficult. We will keep fighting.”
With eight games remaining, United is nine points behind fifth-place Tottenham and 11 points back of fourth-place Aston Villa. Because of a format change to the Champions League next season, the Premier League might get a fifth spot in Europe's elite club competition.
Blowing leads is not a new problem.
United exited the Champions League at the group stage — in last place. They gave away second-half leads in three of those games: a 3-2 home loss to Galatasaray; a 4-3 defeat at Copenhagen; and a 3-3 draw at Galatasaray.
The good news? United has actually closed out a big win recently — over Liverpool 4-3 after extra time in a thrilling FA Cup quarterfinal match. Marcus Rashford tied it at 3-3 before Amad Diallo's winner at Old Trafford.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp pointed to uncharacteristic errors that they'll need to avoid this time.
“We were really good that day but didn’t finish the situations off in extra time,” Klopp said. “We made mistakes we didn’t make before at all. We better play a really good football game to be honest, if we want something there.”
First-place Liverpool holds a two-point lead over Arsenal heading into the weekend.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Manchester United's head coach Erik ten Hag gives instructions from the side line during the English Premier League soccer match between Chelsea and Manchester United at Stamford Bridge in London, Thursday, April 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Manchester United players react after referee award a penalty to Chelsea during the English Premier League soccer match between Chelsea and Manchester United at Stamford Bridge in London, Thursday, April 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
