WTA: First title for Witthöft

Carina Witthöft has secured her first career title against the Puerto Rican Monica Puig with a great performance in the final of the WTA tournament in Luxembourg.

A strong Witthöft beat an unconstant Puig 6:3 and 7:5, thus securing his triumph in Luxembourg.

There was no nervousness in the world’s number 73 right from the start. In the first round, 75 percent of the players were served by the Hamburg player, who played confidently and concentrated. The 22-year-old did not even break in the first set and held up well with her opponent from Puerto Rico.

After losing the serve 2-3, Witthöft took control of the match and won four games in a row to win the deserved 6-4 set.

Witthöft stayed on in the second half of the race and put Puig under further pressure. The reigning Olympic champion made too many easy mistakes, while her opponent was safely off the baseline. So it didn’t take long for the Germans to work out two break-outs at 1:1. The first Witthöft used the first one because of a strong defensive work. With power tennis and coolness, the German headed for victory in Luxembourg, even though Puig managed to reach 5:5 after a 4:1 lead. Again and again, the Hamburg player scored points with her heavy serve, served eight aces and after 92 minutes, turned her first match ball into a title win.

For the 22-year-old, it is the first career title on the WTA tour ever.