Maria Sakkari shows class after surprise defeat to Mayar Sherif in Parma final



by DZEVAD MESIC

Maria Sakkari shows class after surprise defeat to Mayar Sherif in Parma final

Maria Sakkari showed class after losing the Parma final as she congratulated Mayar Sheriff on making her nation proud. In the Parma final, Sherif upset first-seeded Sakkari 7-5 6-3. By winning Parma, Sherif became the first-ever woman from Egypt to win a WTA title.

"First of all congrats Mayar, it was an amazing week. Congrats to you and your team, your sister. I’m sure that everyone back home is proud of you. I wish you all the best," Sakkari said, per Reem Abulleil.

Sherif also kept it very respectful and classy, calling Sakkari "a great player." "I’m pretty tired, I’m exhausted.

First of all I want to congratulate Maria, I know this isn’t the result you expected but you’re an amazing player, a great champion and you don’t have to prove that, we know who you are," Sherif said.

Sakkari loses a WTA final for the third time this year

Sakkari is a top-10 player but she has only one WTA title in her collection.

This season, Sakkari has made three WTA finals, but she is still without a title. Sakkari was the favorite to beat Sherif in the Parma final but just didn't get the job done. Sakkari was three times up by a break in the first and even had a chance to serve out for the opener in the 10th game.

Down 5-4 in the first set, Sherif claimed back-to-back breaks to overturn the deficit and win the opener. After failing to close out the first set, Sakkari started the second set with an early break and a 2-0 lead. Once again, Sakkari failed to hold on to her serve after going up by a break as Sherif responded with breaks in the fourth and eighth games to complete a two-set win.

In February, Sakkari was beaten by Anett Kontaveit in the St. Petersburg final. In the Indian Wells final, Sakkari lost to Iga Swiatek.

Maria Sakkari Mayar Sherif