Estonian Kaia Kanepi won her first Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles title by defeating defending champion and top seed Flavia Pennetta 6-4 6-3 in the final of the XXIII SNAI Open – Internazionali Femminili di Tennis di Palermo.
The wold No.38 Kanepi, seeded fifth in Palermo, had two runner-up finishes in the past: one in the Hasselt final against Kim Clijsters in 2006, and one in 2008 against Caroline Wozniacki in Tokyo. Pennetta’s score in career finals is 9-11 now and 7-7 on clay.
Today in Palermo Kanepi scored her first victory over Pennetta on clay, and they are now 3-3 in head-to-head meetings.
Prior to Palermo, Kanepi had three quarterfinal appearances this season, including one at Wimbledon where she lost to Petra Kvitova. (photo: Stephane Martinache)
