Haddad Maia beats top-seeded Kasatkina to win Korea Open
Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil holds her trophy after defeating Daria Kasatkina of Russia during their final match of the Korea Open tennis championships at Olympic Park Tennis Court in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. Credit: AP/Ahn Young-joon
SEOUL, South Korea — Beatriz Haddad Maia stormed back to beat top-seeded Daria Kasatkina 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 in the Korea Open final on Sunday to win her first WTA tour title of the season.
It is the fourth title of the No. 3 seed’s career and caps a strong run of form by the Brazilian player who has now won 12 of her last 14 matches, a stretch that includes advancing to the final in Cleveland and the quarterfinals of the US Open.
The victory also improved Haddad Maia’s career record against Kasatkina to 3-1.
The Russian player started strongly and took just 26 minutes to secure the first set and appeared to be on track for a quick victory after breaking Haddad Maia to take a 2-0 lead in the second. But Haddad Maia stormed back to take the set.
Haddad Maia then broke Kasatkina in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead and cruised to victory in an hour and 50 minutes.
The quarterfinals and semifinals of the tournament were played on Saturday because rain washed out all action Friday.
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