Serbian Olga Danilovic powered past American qualifier Caroline Dolehide 6-3, 6-1 in the Guangzhou Open final Sunday to seal her first trophy of the season and second of her career.
World No. 86 Danilovic, whose previous triumph came on clay in Moscow six years ago, grabbed a break in the fifth game of the first set in her first hard-court final and overcame a late comeback attempt from Dolehide to seal the victory.
“I’m so happy with the way I played during the tournament,” Danilovic said. “I’m so proud of myself and my team. I really showed what I can do. I’m very excited to be finishing the season this way.”
After wrapping up the opener with a second break, the 23-year-old appeared distracted by movement in the stands and surrendered her serve early in the second set, but she responded strongly to build a 4-1 lead.
Danilovic peppered her fatigued opponent with powerful shots for a double break and closed out the match on serve, finishing with a blistering forehand winner before a huge serve on her third match point.
