Caroline Wozniacki vs Venus Williams (6-4, 6-4)
Caroline Wozniacki might no longer be the World No.1, but she proved she still has what it takes to be the best.
After dominating the WTA Finals all week, the Danish star completed the job with a deserved victory over online betting darling Venus Williams.
The 27-year-old had betting websites and sports betting experts backing her in the encounter, and she didn’t disappoint as she claimed the year-end title in Singapore for the first time in her career.
It wasn’t an easy feat for Wozniacki though, as she had to survive a brilliant second-set fightback from the 37-year-old Williams, who returned to life after a victory was seemingly out of reach.
The two stars played out a close first set, with the server dominating the first three games. Williams had the chance to break, leading 40-15 with the score at 2-1. Wozniacki, however, brought the game to deuce with strong hitting and good court coverage before eventually jumping to a 3-1 lead.
The American legend continued to be aggressive and attacked the net to level the score, but Wozniacki endured the heavy blows and went up 5-3 before a slew of Williams forehand errors gave her the set.
Wozniacki obviously had the momentum swinging on her side come the second frame, and she quickly jumped to a 5-0 lead after just 11 minutes, thanks in large part to her shot variation and lack of errors.
Feeling the urgency to perform and stay in contention, Williams found her rhythm and broke with exceptional and smart plays to get back in the game. She piled more pressure on Wozniacki and ultimately reduced the gap to 5-4.
Wozniacki, nonetheless, didn’t falter and held on, breaking on her second match point and finishing the match with a resounding backhand winner.
Post-match statistics also showed how Wozniacki dominated. Williams had the better first service percentage, but Caro had the advantage when it comes to total service points and return points won, with 57 percent and 52 percent respectively.
With the win, Wozniacki not only got her first WTA Finals title, but she also seized her first win against Williams after losing their seven previous meetings.
“Eight is my lucky number!” Wozniacki said. “I was hoping that if I’m going to beat her, at least once in my career, it has to be today. I just went out there and I just did my best.”
Wozniacki is expected to finish the year at World No.3, finishing the season as the leader in match wins with 60. Meanwhile, Williams is projected to stay in the top five after a campaign that also saw her fight in the Australia and Wimbledon finals.
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