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Second seed Ekaterina Alexandrova got the better of the top-seeded Jelena Ostapenko in the final of the Hana Bank Open on Sunday. Alexandrova won 7-6(4), 6-0 in an hour and 25 minutes to clinch what was her second title in 2022.
Ostapenko began the match on an aggressive note as she went up a break and lead 3-1 and then again 5-3, in the first set. However, Alexandrova rallied and brought the set back on serve. En route to winning the opening set in the tie-break, Alexandrova also saved a set point before taking the lead in the match.
Ostapenko’s momentum gave away completely in the second set and Alexandrova was able to come through in straight sets. The higher-seeded player also looked to be struggling with an injury that prevented her from playing as well as she’d done in the first set and in the previous rounds.
Hana Bank Open: Ekaterina Alexandrova takes it all
Alexandrova won 75% of her first-serve points to Ostapenko’s 56%. While she won only 42% of her second-serve points, the 27-year-old did better when it came to winning points on second-serve return – winning 73%.
She converted six of the seven break points she had on the Latvian’s serve and saved three of the six break points she faced. Alexandrova finished the match with 27 winners, 15 more than Ostapenko’s 12. She also had fewer unforced errors than her opponent, 17 to the latter’s 27.
The Hana Bank Open title’s the third WTA title of Ekaterina Alexandrova’s career. Her first title came at the Shenzhen International in 2020 while her second came in S’Hertogenbosch, at the Libema Open earlier this year in the grass season.
Overall, Alexandrova’s played five WTA finals in her career. Meanwhile, Jelena Ostapenko was also bidding to win her second trophy this year, after having won the Dubai Open earlier. Photo Credit: WTA Russians Twitter