Marion Bartoli defeated US Open champion Samantha Stosur of Australia to reclaim the singles title she won in 2006 at the Japan Women’s Open tennis tournament on Sunday. The French second seed, who eliminated Angelique Kerber of Germany in the rain-delayed semi-finals earlier in the day, went on to win the final with a 6-3, 6-1 victory in 74 minutes.
“I’m very happy with the way I played this week. I felt my level dropped in August, especially at the US Open, but now I’m back playing well again,” said Bartoli. “Obviously to win a title is great. Now I have two this year, so I’m really happy. I love to play in Japan. I love this country. Everyone is so friendly,” she added. It was Bartoli’s second title of the season, following her triumph at Eastbourne, and seventh career title, taking the winner’s cheque of $37,000.
Stosur, who claimed her first WTA title in 2009 here, beat Zheng Jie of China 7-6 (7/5), 3-6, 6-3 in the semi-finals in the morning, a match that lasted two hours and 36 minutes.
