Harriet Dart wins first WTA title in Guangzhou, coming back from a set down
Harriet Dart has won her first WTA Tour title, beating Austria's Lilli Tagger 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the Guangzhou Open final in China. The Guardian reported the result, which also lifted Dart back into the top 100 of the WTA rankings.
Dart is 30 and from Hampstead in north London. She came into the tournament as a qualifier, meaning she had to win earlier rounds before reaching the main draw. She was also Britain's No 5 player. Her run included a semifinal win over China's Sun Xinran, the 16-year-old, that went 5-7, 7-6(1), 6-0 and lasted two hours and 29 minutes, according to Reuters.
That semifinal had a moment of real danger. Dart saved two match points in the second set, meaning she was two points from losing the match and held on. WTA Tennis highlighted the save. Before that, she had beaten Paula Badosa in three sets in the quarterfinal.
Tagger, who is 18, was the fourth seed. Seeding is the ranking that keeps the strongest players apart in the early rounds. She had a strong week of her own. She beat Magda Linette in 67 minutes in the quarterfinals, and she dropped just two games on her way to the final.
Her semifinal was harder. She beat wild card Shi Han 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 in 2 hours and 38 minutes. A wild card is an invitation from the tournament organisers rather than a place earned on ranking. Tagger trailed 4-2 in the deciding set and still won it, as WTA Tennis reported.
The final followed a familiar pattern for a deciding set. Tagger took the opening set 6-4, which left Dart needing to change the match. Dart did that, winning the next two sets 6-3 and 6-4. A set is a unit of the match, and a player who wins two in a row often keeps the momentum that got them there.
For Dart, the result is a career first at this level and a clear jump in the rankings. For Tagger, it is a runner-up finish from a week that showed how young players can handle long matches. Both players reached the final by winning close, tiring contests, and the title went to the player who found a way back after losing the first set.
