Petra Kvitova landed the St Petersburg Ladies’ Trophy title on Sunday with a comfortable victory over defending champion Kristina Mladenovic.
The Czech two-time Wimbledon champion saw off France’s Mladenovic 6-1 6-2 in an hour and five minutes.
It made it 21 career WTA titles for Kvitova, who was appearing in a final for the first time since winning the Aegon Classic in June – a triumph which came just six months on from her sustaining career-threatening hand injuries when she was stabbed by an intruder at her home.
.@Petra_Kvitova claims the @Formula_TX title!
Downs Mladenovic, 6-1, 6-2! pic.twitter.com/ddoqhPh0XG
— WTA (@WTA) February 4, 2018
The 27-year-old’s successful week in Russia was a return to form after she made a first-round exit at the Australian Open.
Earlier, Timea Babos secured her third career WTA title with a 7-5 6-1 victory over Kateryna Kozlova at the Taiwan Open.
— WTA (@WTA) February 4, 2018
“It was not easy, she played really well and really aggressive in the first set,” Babos said, quoted on the WTA website. “But I stayed there, I got all the important moments, and I really fought hard.
“The first set, I think it was very difficult for me to start. I was a bit slower today than before. It’s a final, somehow you have to manage a different kind of nerves.”
