Tennis: surprise victory for Ashlyn Krueger in Osaka

The American Ashlyn Krueger won the first WTA title of her career at 19 years old by beating 6-3, 7-6 (8/6) on Sunday in Osaka the Chinese Lin Zhu, seeded number 1 in this WTA 250 tournament. On the fast Japanese surface, the Texan, 123rd in the world, played the first final of her career and only her 11th tournament on the WTA circuit. A sign of his dream week, Krueger did not lose a round in five matches on the green surface of Osaka.

For his part, Lin Zhu, 29 years old and 35th in the world, was aiming for the second title of his career in his second final, after winning the tournament in Hua Hin (Thailand) at the start of the year. Zhu, recent defeater of Caroline Garcia in Cleveland, was favorite in this duel but was hampered by the power of the tall American (1.85 m), who scored 7 aces.

For this first clash between the two players, Krueger quickly dominated the first set, winning in 36 minutes with a break from Zhu's first service game. She retained this advantage to conclude the first round (6-3). The second round was more competitive. Zhu took the lead but was forced into a decisive game, since neither player gave up her throw. And Krueger concluded the final in 1h36.