Cincinnati Open: Ashleigh Barty and Alexander Zverev claim dominant final wins

By Fatuma
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Updated: August 23, 2021
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World number one Ashleigh Barty warmed up for the US Open by clinching the Cincinnati Open with a straight-set win over Jil Teichmann in the final.

Barty, 25, produced a polished performance to beat the 24-year-old Swiss wildcard 6-3 6-1.

The Australian managed eight aces and 28 winners as she cruised to another commanding victory.

Alexander Zverev took the men’s title with an impressive 6-2 6-3 win over Andrey Rublev.

It is a fifth title of the season for Barty, who is favourite to add the US Open title to her Wimbledon crown.

Teichmann, ranked 76th, reached the final by beating three top-12 players in four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka, fourth seed Karolina Pliskova and Olympic gold medallist Belinda Bencic, but was unable to contend with Barty’s power and precision.

Barty took control halfway through the first set and was rarely troubled from there as she won the opening five games of the second.

While Teichmann managed to break the two-time major winner’s serve for the first time in the sixth game of the second set, Barty broke straight back to cap a dominant display.

“To my team, we’ve been on the road for nearly six months but it’s been a joy every single day so thank you for hanging in there with me,” said Barty.

“It’s been awesome, you’ve kept me in one piece and we’ve certainly enjoyed every single minute.”

Zverev outclasses Rublev to take men’s title

Olympic champion Zverev, 24, extended his unbeaten run to 11 matches as he dispatched Russia’s Rublev in the men’s final.

The German, who is hoping to go one better at the US Open after losing last year’s final to Dominic Thiem, outplayed Rublev to take the first 6-2.

And while there was a minor wobble in the second set when Rublev broke to take it to 5-3, third seed Zverev quickly regrouped to put the finishing touches on another thoroughly impressive performance.

It is Zverev’s fifth Masters title and his second this year as he further cemented his status as one of the favourites for the men’s singles title at Flushing Meadows.

Source : BBC Sport