Elina Svitolina beats Caroline Wozniacki in Dubai to break into top 10
Monday 27 February 2017 12:37, UK
Elina Svitolina beat Caroline Wozniacki 6-4 6-2 to win the Dubai Duty Free Championships on Saturday and has secured a spot in the top-10 rankings.
Svitolina triumphed in a rain-delayed final at the Dubai Tennis Championships to make it 12 victories in a row.
The 22-year-old will climb from 13th in the rankings on the back of her run in the desert, which included a semi-final victory over top seed Angelique Kerber.
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The Ukrainian, who won in Taipei this season, spent 54 minutes in claiming the first set in a battle of long points, with Wozniacki saving two set points - one with a second-serve ace - before losing from a forehand long.
Svitolina took a 3-2 lead in the second set on a break, then reached 5-2 before drilling a forehand winner down the line for victory after less than 90 minutes.
Wozniacki was playing her second final in as many weeks after finishing runner-up in Doha to Karolina Pliskova.
Meanwhile, Timea Babos delighted the home fans in Budapest with a 7-5 6-1 victory over Julia Goerges while Lucie Safarova defeated Carina Witthoeft 6-4 6-3.
