Bertens beats Vekic to win St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy

Posted February 03, 2019 6:00 am

The Associated Press

Kiki Bertens of Netherlands returns the ball to Donna Vekic of Croatia during the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy-2019 tennis tournament final match in St.Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky) The Associated Press

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) - Kiki Bertens won her third title in six months on Sunday, beating Donna Vekic 7-6 (2), 6-4 in the final of the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.

Second-seeded Bertens came back from 5-2 down in the first set to win four straight games and force a tiebreaker. Eighth-seeded Vekic saved three match points in the second set before Bertens closed out the match for her eighth career title.

The win continued Bertens' emergence as a more versatile player. Until she beat Simona Halep to win the Cincinnati Open in August, Bertens had never reached a WTA final on any surface other than clay, but she has now won three straight hard-court finals.

Bertens' current ranking of eighth is the best for a Dutch woman since Betty Stove, who reached No. 5 in 1977.

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Kiki Bertens of Netherlands reacts during the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy-2019 tennis tournament final match against Donna Vekic of Croatiain St.Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky) The Associated Press

Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands returns the ball to Donna Vekic of Croatia during the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy-2019 tennis tournament final match in St.Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky) The Associated Press

Donna Vekic of Croatia returns the ball to Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands during the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy-2019 tennis tournament final match in St.Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky) The Associated Press

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