Zhang triumphs on home soil

AFP, SHANGHAI: China's Zhang Shuai battled to her second career title with a gutsy three-set victory in the final of the Guangzhou Open on Saturday.

The number two seed defeated unseeded Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 in nearly two hours on the hard courts in southern China, to the delight of the home crowd. Zhang, the world number 30, held her arms aloft and dropped to her knees after sealing the title with an ace, recapturing the crown she won in 2013.

But Krunic found her groove in the second set and the more experienced Zhang, 28, began to falter.

Zhang triumphs on home soil

AFP, SHANGHAI: Chinas Zhang Shuai battled to her second career title with a gutsy three-set victory in the final of the Guangzhou Open on Saturday. The number two seed defeated unseeded Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 in nearly two hours on the hard courts in southern China, to the delight of the home crowd. Zhang, the world number 30, held her arms aloft and dropped to her knees after sealing the title with an ace, recapturing the crown she won in 2013. But Krunic found her groove in the second set and the more experienced Zhang, 28, began to falter.