IT TOOK three goes to finally lift the Upper Austria Ladies Linz trophy, but Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova finally got there overnight, with the fourth seed ousting Ukrainian fifth seed Dayana Yastremska in an epic three-set match.

The contest went for two hours and 13 minutes, with each set getting gradually longer, before a crucial break in the penultimate game of the match secured the higher ranked player a 6-2 3-6 7-5 victory. The win meant Alexandrova went one better than last year where she lost to Jelena Ostapenko, but also one better than in 2018 when she lost to Italian Camila Giorgi.

“This tournament was always special for me — I really love playing here every time — and now, finally, I can make it to the end at the third time,” Alexandrova said post-match. “I’m super pleased and happy, and this place is going to be special and magical for me all the time.”

While capable of controlling matches, the Russian had to sit back in the final against the hard-hitting Yastremska as the Ukrainian hit 40 winners to 42 unforced errors, compared to Alexandrova’s eight and 15 respectively. Not much between them overall despite the different approaches, Alexandrova served at a far higher clip (72 to 53 per cent) and was able to capitalise off her first serve (71 per cent).

Yastremska kept herself in it by digging deep on her second, winning half of her points compared to her opponent’s one third success rate, but in the end the fifth break of service going the way of the fourth seed ultimately sealed the result.

After not winning a title last year, Alexandrova has quickly added a fifth trophy to her cabinet, joining Seoul, Shenzen and back-to-back silverware from ‘s-Hertogenbosch in 2022-23, the latter of which was her most recent success.

There will be a quick turnaround for the Russian who heads to Abu Dhabi for a clash with Canadian Leylah Fernandez tomorrow, while Yastremska has opted to have a rest this week.

2025 UPPER AUSTRIA LADIES LINZ WTA 500 – FINAL RESULT:

[4] Ekaterina Alexandrova (RUS) defeated [5] Dayana Yastremska (UKR) 6-2 3-6 7-5

Meanwhile it was a much more straight forward result in the Singapore Tennis Open with second seed Elise Mertens securing the WTA 250 event there. She made light work of American Ann Li in the final, only dropping five games en route to the title.

Mertens hit a neat 13 winners to 12 unforced errors, withstanding Li’s 25 and 27 respectively as the American looked to power past her higher ranked opponent. However Mertens’ experience and consistency came to the fore, winning 74 and 54 per cent of her first and second serve points off a 75 per cent clip throughout the match.

Though she faced five break points, the Belgian saved four of them, all while converting five of nine b reak points herself in the win. She won eight of the first nine games to set up the victory, and never really looked back from there. The former world number 12 lifted a trophy for the ninth time in her career, denying the 24-year-old American her second career WTA Tour title.

2025 SINGAPORE TENNIS OPEN WTA 250 – FINAL RESULT:

[2] Elise Mertens (BEL) defeated Ann Li (USA) 6-1 6-4