Elina Svitolina wins Italian Open to claim fourth WTA Tour title of year
ByPA Sport
Updated 21/05/2017 at 15:06 GMT
Elina Svitolina completed a stunning comeback to win the Italian Open and claim a WTA Tour-leading fourth title of the year.
Elina Svitolina of Ukraine poses with the trophy after winning the WTA Singles Final match against Simona Halep of Roumania during The Internazionali BNL d'Italia 2017 - Day Eight at Foro Italico on May 21, 2017 in Rome, Italy.
Image credit: Getty Images
The Ukrainian came from behind to beat world number four Simona Halep over three sets, triumphing 4-6 7-5 6-1 to move into the world's top 10.
Halep had stormed into an early lead, threatening to break early on before forcing her opponent into a series of unforced errors and consolidating a break before making it 5-2.
However the turning point came as the Romanian suffered a heavy fall, going over on her right ankle. Despite losing consecutive games, Halep recovered to clinch the first set but her movement grew gradually worse as she called the trainer out.
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Elina Svitolina of Ukraine in action during the women's final against Simona Halep of Romania on Day Eight of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia 2017 at Foro Italico on May 21, 2017 in Rome, Italy.
Image credit: Getty Images
The pair traded breaks early in the second set and Svitolina called the trainer out for a lower-back issue, before seeing a set point go to waste as Halep called an official medical time out.
Svitolina eventually made the decisive break to take the second set 7-5, and raced through the third as Halep struggled with her movement and could not prevent the 22-year-old claiming an emphatic victory.
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