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Arantxa Rus clinched her first title on the WTA Tour at the 2023 Hamburg European Open, defeating Noha Noma Akugue in the final.
Rus, seeded No. 7, sailed past home favorite Akugue in the first set, 6-0, converting all three break points on the German's serve.
Akugue showed much more resilience in the second set, sending it to a tiebreaker. Rus raced to a 6-1 lead in the tiebreaker, but Akugue once again found her groove, saving 3 match points. But Rus was not to be denied and won the tiebreaker 7-3 to grab the title with a 6-0, 7-6(3) win.
In her remarks at the trophy ceremony, Rus grew emotional and dedicated her maiden Tour-level title to her late father, Lous Rus, who passed away earlier this year. The 32-year-old also hoped to return to Hamburg next year to defend her title.
"I really hope to comeback here next year, and I would like to give the trophy to my dad," Rus said.
This was the first-ever WTA Tour final for both Rus and Akugue, and the triumph will help the former break into the top 50 for the first time in her career. She would reach a career-high ranking of World No. 42 with 1,182 points.
Meanwhile, Akugue, ranked World No. 207 before the tournament, will rise 65 spots to become World No. 142.
Arantxa Rus defeated Maria Timofeeva, who won the title at the Budapest Open last week, in the first round in a tough three-set match, 6-2, 4-6, 6-1. She then outlasted Nadia Podoroska, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, in the second round; Eva Lys, 6-2, 6-2, in the quarterfinal; and Daria Saville, 2-6, 6-1, 6-1, in the semifinal.
Arantxa Rus won two Challenger titles before entering the Hamburg Open
Arantxa Rus was already enjoying a fruitful 2023 season before her milestone in Hamburg. The Dutch No. 1 grabbed two Challenger-level titles before she began her campaign in Germany.
She first clinched the title at the La Bisbal D'Emporda Challenger in Spain in June as the No. 7 seed. She bettered Panna Udvardy of Hungary in the final, 7-6(2), 6-3.
The 32-year-old then carried forward her form at the Contrexeville Challenger in France in July, where she was seeded No. 4. Rus quashed the challenge of former Roland Garros finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in the final, 6-3, 6-3.
With her triumph in Hamburg, Arantxa Rus has become the eighth player to win their WTA Tour title in 2023. Others on the list are: Zhu Lin (Hua Hin Open), Alycia Parks (Lyon Open), Marta Kostyuk (Austin Open), Lucia Bronzetti (Rabat Open), Katie Boulter (Nottingham Open), Maria Timofeeva (Budapest Open), and Zheng Qinwen (Palermo Open).
