Iga Swiatek, the world number nine, suffered a shock defeat in the final of the Dubai Tennis Championships as Barbora Krejcikova won the title.
The 21-year-old Pole, who had won the French Open last year, was the favourite to win the tournament but was beaten 6-4, 6-4 by the unseeded Czech.
Krejcikova, who is ranked 44th in the world, was the underdog going into the match but she played a superb match to take the title.
Swiatek had been in good form throughout the tournament, winning all her matches in straight sets. But she was unable to find her best form in the final and was outplayed by Krejcikova.
The Czech was the more aggressive player and she was able to take control of the match early on. She broke Swiatek’s serve in the first set and then held her own serve to take the set 6-4.
In the second set, Krejcikova continued to dominate and she broke Swiatek’s serve again to take a 4-2 lead. Swiatek was able to break back but Krejcikova held her nerve to take the set 6-4 and the match.
The victory was Krejcikova’s first WTA singles title and it was a remarkable achievement for the 25-year-old. She had never reached a WTA singles final before and she had to beat some of the best players in the world to win the title.
Swiatek will be disappointed with the result but she can take some comfort from the fact that she reached the final of a WTA tournament for the first time since winning the French Open last year.
Krejcikova’s victory is a reminder that anything is possible in tennis and that no player is unbeatable. It was a remarkable performance from the Czech and she will be hoping to build on this success in the future.