Maria Sakkari has claimed her maiden WTA 1000 title in Guadalajara, bringing an end to the Greek's run of six successive final defeats.
Sakkari beat world No.111 Caroline Dolehide, 7-5 6-3, in the final to become the first Greek WTA 1000 winner.
The 28-year-old had reached the final at the Guadalajara Open last year, where she had also met an American, but lost out to Jessica Pegula on that occasion.
However, she managed to get revenge last night, winning only her second title after Rabat in 2019.
"It’s amazing, I’m speechless," said Sakkari. "It’s been four-and-a-half years since I won my first title, and I just finally won my second one. All these thoughts that I’ve been having all this time were very tough to overcome, and I’m just very proud of myself that I did it this week."
She continued, "I feel like I haven’t really realized what I did this week, and it’s going to take a little bit of time. But at the same time, I just want to really enjoy the moment today and tomorrow, and just keep working hard, because I’m sure that more are going to come in the future."
Sakkari claimed the title in Guadalajara without dropping a set all week, and spoke of how she sees the Mexican city as a second home.
“I’m so happy to be a part of this group of people, to be here every year, to celebrate with you guys. With all of you. This is my second home. Thank you so much," Sakkari reflected in her post-match speech.
With this win, Sakkari moves back up to No.6 in the WTA rankings and improves her chances of reaching the year-end finals that will also be held in Mexico (Cancun).
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