The USA's Coco Gauff pulled off an astounding comeback against Chinas's Qinwen Zheng to win the WTA Finals title in Saudi Arabia.
The former US Open champion found herself a set and a break down against the Olympic gold medallist, but her never-say-die attitude came to the fore in a sensational 3–6, 6–4, 7–6[2] success.
At just 20 years old, Gauff is the youngest player to win the WTA Finals title since a 17-year-old Maria Sharapova in the 2004 edition, and her three-hour and four-minute triumph was the longest WTA Finals showpiece on record.
As scintillating as Gauff's Riyadh turnaround was, the final was one of missed opportunities for Zheng, who had the chance to serve for the match at 5-4 in the deciding set but was incredibly pegged back by her American foe.
The clash ended in typically dramatic fashion too; on Gauff's fifth Championship point, a Zheng shot clipped the net tape and landed on the American's side, but she raced forward and swept a clinical forehand out of the Chinese player's reach to clinch the trophy.
Cameron Norrie falls short in Moselle Open final
Elsewhere, there was British interest in the final of the Moselle Open on the ATP Tour, where former national number one Cameron Norrie competed in his 15th top-level championship match.
Home favourite Benjamin Bonzi - who shocked Casper Ruud in the second round - was his opponent, and the French qualifier proved that his elimination of the Norwegian was no fluke as he beat Norrie 7-6[6] 6-4 to win the title.
The 29-year-old drew first blood with a break in the seventh game, but he was immediately pegged back by Bonzi, who then saved an astronomical 10 break points to hold for a 5-4 advantage.
The Frenchman did not look back after racing into a 4-1 lead in the tie-breaker, and the same was true when Norrie lost serve in the third game of the second set, after which the Briton failed to trouble his opponent on serve whatsoever.
A 22nd unforced error from Norrie on Bonzi's first match point ensured that the qualifier would be taking home his first top-level title, while also becoming just the third qualifier to ever win the Metz crown.
Meanwhile, Norrie has now been beaten in four of his last five finals, but he is back in the top 50 of the ATP Rankings and has a solid foundation to build on for next year after a challenging 2024 season. body check tags ::
