Li Na of China holds the trophy after winning her women's singles final match against Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia at 2014 Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, Jan. 25, 2014. [Photo: Xinhua]
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Li Na of China holds the trophy after winning her women's singles final match against Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia at 2014 Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, Jan. 25, 2014. [Photo: Xinhua] |
Two-time runner-up Li Na of China finally won her first Australian Open women's singles title on Saturday after beating Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova 7-6 (7- 3), 6-0 in the final.
The fourth seed fought 70 minutes to take the first set through a tiebreak. She broke Cibulkova's serve in the opening match but made two double faults in the sixth game, which allowed Cibulkova to break back.
The two players broke each other once again in the 11th and 12th game of the first set and forced a tiebreak. Mini-breaks exchanged in the tiebreak before Li served out to win the first set.
Cibulkova, the first woman to reach final at a Grand Slam, found herself helpless in the second set as she failed to keep even just one serve game. Li improved her consistence and concentration to break Cibulkova three times and thrashed her opponent 6-0 to claim her first Australian Open.
Li, who won Asian's first Grand Slam in 2011 at the French Open, made into Australian Open final twice in 2011 and 2013.
In 2011, she led 1-0 against Kim Clijsters in her first Grand Slam final, only to crumble.
A year ago against Victoria Azarenka, Li fell, twisting her ankle and hitting her head so hard on the court that she suffered concussion.
"The last two time was close," said Li Na. "Finally I can have this."