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Liudmila Samsonova denied Aliaksandra Sasnovich the first title of her career after pipping her in the Cleveland Open final on Saturday. Samsonova pocketed a 6-1, 6-3 win after an hour and 12 minutes of play. Of the two players, it was Samsonova who put in a higher percentage of first serves – 83% to Samsonova’s 56%.
However, where the latter won 80% of her first-serve points, Sasnovich could only claim 50% off her first serves. In terms of second-serve, Samsonova won 50% of her second-serve points and 67% points on return on her opponent’s second serve.
Five breaks of Sasnovich’s serve allowed Samsonova to claim the win in straight sets.
Cleveland Open: Liudmila Samsonova rules in Ohio
Earlier in August, Samsonova won the title at the Citi Open in Washington DC (def.
Kaia Kanepi). Since that run, including the matches played this week, Samsonova’s won 10 consecutive matches. Speaking about winning two titles, Samsonova shared, “It’s unbelievable to win two titles in a row for me here in the United States, I didn’t expect it.
I like so much to play here because the surface is pretty fast, I love it. It was helping me in tough situations”. She also spoke about heading to the US Open next. “I think [the US Open is] going to be a different tournament because the conditions are different there.
But of course, I played five matches here, so I think they helped me”. Overall, the Cleveland Open title was the third title of Samsonova’s career. The 23-year-old’s now won all three finals she’s contested.
On the other hand, Aliaksandra Sasnovich’s woes in the finals extended further. Sasnovich, who’s reached four finals now – including the one she contested this week – has lost all of them. Her third final had come in Melbourne in 2022, in January. Photo Credit: Cleveland Open Twitter