Staff Reporter.
Two-time Grand Slam finalist Amanda Anisimova won her second WTA 1000 title of the year on Sunday, brushing off a second-set stumble to beat Linda Noskova 6-0 2-6 6-2 in the China Open final.
Noskova, playing in her first WTA 1,000 showpiece, won just 12 points in a 23-minute opening set where she was on the end of a ‘bagel’ – losing a set without winning a game.
However, with a more aggressive approach, Noskova broke her American opponent in the first game of the second set.
The world number 27 recovered from back-to-back double faults in the next game to consolidate her break and took the second set to level the match.
Anisimova, who hit 17 unforced errors in the second set after just four in the first, improved in the decider and broke Noskova in the sixth game before going on to claim victory.
“It’s been an incredible few weeks,” said world number four Anisimova, adding that Sunday’s victory “has been really special” and she “was excited for a lot more”.
Next for both players is the Wuhan Open, which Nosková will enter as the highest-ranked Czech player on the WTA Tour, overtaking Karolína Muchová.
Anisimova is drawn to face either Varvara Gracheva or Jéssica Bouzas Maneiro in the second round, while Nosková will play Yulia Putintseva in the opening round of the 56-player tournament, which began on Saturday.