German woman tennis player Angelique Kerber managed to defend the Stuttgart Open title after beating compatriot Laura Siegemund in straight sets in the final here on Sunday.
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The Australian Open champion started the second set with a break and capitalized on a host of unforced errors from Siegemund playing her first final in her hometown to wrap up the match in 81 minutes with her first match point.
Siegemund battled to hold serve in her opening service game of the second set. The mark of a true champion though is to never give in, and with the improvements we have seen in Kerber’s mental fortitude, she hung in there with patience and determination to break back once more to get on level terms.
She will bound up almost 30 spots to a career-high ranking of number 42. “But it was physically”, Siegemund said of her issues with fatigue in the final.
Speaking after the match, Kerber was delighted.
Kerber, the second seed here, dug deep in the third by making the majority of her first serves count to seal the win.
But the world number three got off to a false start when she found herself 3-0 down in the tight first set before fighting her way back. The German qualifier showed little resistance as a pumped-up Kerber broke Siegemund again as back-to-back missed backhand volleys from Siegemund gave Kerber a 5-2 lead. That was I think the key that I really started to hit the balls and try to believe in my game and myself.
The reigning Australian Open champion trailed in her overall head-to-head with Kvitova 3-4 before their semifinal, but won their most recent encounter at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
The 28-year-old struggled after winning in Melbourne, crashing out early at both the WTA tournaments in Doha and Indian Wells, before losing in the semi-finals at both Miami, on hard court, and Charleston, on clay.
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Until then, the steering wheel of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix remains in Kerber’s safe hands.
