Eighth seed Victoria Azarenka cruised past fifth seed Maria Sharapova in the final of the $700,000 Bank of the West Classic in Stanford to win her fourth career title and her first one this year.
Azarenka, who turned 21 on Saturday, survived a 6-3 3-1 deficit in the quarterfinal against defending champion Marion Bartoli, but the last two steps to the title were easier – the 6-2 6-3 victory over top seed Samantha Stosur in the semis and the 6-4 6-1 win over Maria Sharapova in the final in which Azarenka won the last 15 points.
The Belorussian’s previous three titles include Brisbane, Memphis and Miami, and they all came in 2009.
I think Maria’s days of winning Grand Slam titles may be over.
Congrats to Azarenka. What a nice birthday gift for yourself. Who knows about her coach-he sure looks really cute. Are they dating?
Great match, too loud though. Vika had a great week.
El, I doubt they are dating, I can imagine Vika with everyone except her coach Sam.
Azarenka’s coach is married. He is a very calming presence with her. No wonder Vera wanted him back. Great win for Vika. Love her and love her fight. When Serena and Venus retire she will be the player that I will be cheering for most.
I saw her playing Kim in Eastbourne, she is a great fighter! Kim pushed her really hard there, but she kept her composure and never let it slip. I like her the most from the younger generation. I think she will definitely win a grand slam in future. As for Maria Sharapova, it’s not that she is a bad player, she is in a great form but Victoria has an incredible game which is tough to beat even for someone like Maria or Kim.
Thanks for the thoughtful commies answering my question about Vika. I have not followed her but now I think I will make a point of watching her matches.
I believe she is the player in the AO ’10 that Serena came from behind for a shocking win (is this correct)?
I’m delighted for her. This title has been a long time coming, it feels an age since she won in Miami! It was tough for me that they were playing each other because they are two of my favourite players. Sharapova was probably tired, she had tough matches against Dementieva and Radwanska. To me Vika is by far the future star of the up and coming generation. It would surprise me if she’s not winning Slams in a few years.
El, yes Serena and Vika played at the AO 2010 and Serena won 4-6 7-6(4) 6-2. They also met at the 2008 and 2009 AO.