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Brisbane International

Azarenka beats Bartoli to win first title

BRISBANE: Victoria Azarenka claimed her first title on the WTA tour when she downed France’s Marion Bartoli 6-3, 6-1 in the final of the Brisbane International here Saturday.

The 19-year-old, from Belarus, was too powerful for Bartoli, with the depth of her ground strokes forcing the Frenchwoman into a host of errors. Azarenka’s power and consistency also put Bartoli’s usually reliable serve under enormous pressure and the strain began to show as the match progressed. Bartoli, 24, served six double faults – two of them to hand the first set to Azarenka – while she made only 63 per cent of her first serves, winning just 45 per cent of them. In contrast Azarenka didn’t serve a double fault for the entire match and was successful with 71 per cent of her first serves.

The Belarusian broke Bartoli three times in each set in a dominant display and while Bartoli had her chances to break back, she was only able to do so on two occasions. “You can serve well the whole week as I did and serve bad in the final. There is no reason for it, it just happens,” Bartoli said. “That was the case for me tonight. I hope it’s not going to be the case for me next week (at the Sydney International) and at the Australian Open.”

Azarenka, the world number 15, was in good form throughout the week and went through the tournament without dropping a set. “Throughout the whole week I felt very confident, good physically and ready for every match,” she said. Despite not having won previously on the tour, she showed no signs of nerves against her older opponent. She wrapped up the first set in 41 minutes then raced to a 4-0 lead in the second. Bartoli broke back to make it 4-1, but Azarenka was not to be denied and she broke back immediately then calmly served out the match. “There weren’t any nerves – the way I think on the court’s very different (from off court),” she said. “I just go and play every point as it happens and that’s what helped me a lot. “I wasn’t thinking that I was playing a final, I was just playing regular match and playing point by point and staying motivated throughout the whole match.”

She said she had matured greatly from when she finished runner-up at this tournament last year. “I am at a different level now especially physically because I’ve been working so hard in the pre-season,” she said. “I’m just so happy it’s all paying off. “I’ve improved just about everything there is in the pre-season but there’s a little bit still to improve and I hope to keep going and play the best I can.” Bartoli said she had gained confidence from her performances in Brisbane ahead of the Australian Open. “Tonight, maybe I was tired,” she said. “I’ve been practising a lot to make sure I’m ready for the Australian Open and maybe it caught up with me tonight. “It’s the first time I’ve played really well in Australia since I first came here in 2002. “I’ve usually been pretty bad here but this time I feel great. “I just want to stay positive because it’s been a really great week for me and if I can carry on with the same form next week and at the Aussie Open it will be great.” afp

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