Dubai: Venus Williams retained her Dubai Championships crown by defeating Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 6-3 7-5 in Saturday’s final.
It was the third-seeded American’s 42nd singles title, putting her one ahead of Justine Henin at the top of the list of active players.
The high-quality match was competitive from start to finish, with just one break deciding the first set and three match points needed in the second.
Fourth seed Azarenka, who was seeking her fourth career title, rallied well with Williams but could not match her serving power or the strength of her groundstrokes.
The opening set was effectively decided on a double-fault at 3-2 after Williams had forced a backhand error to set up break point.
Azarenka’s second serve was called in but Williams appealed and the Hawkeye line-calling system showed a fault.
Williams had difficulty serving out the set at 5-3, hitting two double-faults and then facing a break point which she saved with a forehand pass.
The American then broke to lead 1-0 in the second set when Azarenka netted a backhand.
A forehand error allowed the Belarussian to level at 3-3 and the set seemed destined for a tiebreak until another forehand pass gave Williams a decisive break for 6-5.
The final point was one of the best of the match, as each ran the other around in a rally before Azarenka strained to hit a forehand that failed to clear the net.
Bureau Report
First Published: Sunday, February 21, 2010, 00:00