This week`s WTA 125 tournaments saw significant results for several players. A wild card entry in France proved highly successful for Naomi Osaka, while Dalma Galfi and Bianca Andreescu secured titles in Spain.
Wild Card Entry Pays Off: Osaka Claims Saint-Malo Title
Former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka of Japan clinched the first WTA 125 title of her career on Sunday. She defeated Kaja Juvan of Slovenia with a score of 6-1, 7-5 to win the L`Open 35 de Saint-Malo tournament held in Saint-Malo, France.
While Osaka is a celebrated champion with four Grand Slam titles and multiple Hologic WTA Tour victories, this marks her first singles title at any level since her triumph at the 2021 Australian Open.
Entering the Saint-Malo event as the second seed on a wild card, Osaka navigated the draw smoothly. She dropped just one set each in matches against French players Diane Parry and Leolia Jeanjean en route to the final.
It`s worth noting that this was not Osaka`s first appearance in a WTA 125 final; she was the runner-up at the WTA 125 Hua Hin event back in 2015.
A special mention goes to Kaja Juvan, the finalist, who made a strong return to the tour in January after a year-long absence and quickly reached a WTA 125 final.
In the Saint-Malo doubles competition, the top-seeded pair of Maia Lumsden and Makoto Ninomiya took the title. They defeated the second seeds, Oksana Kalashnikova and Angelica Moratelli, 7-5, 6-2 in the final match on Saturday.
Galfi Victorious in Vic, Extends Winning Streak
Dalma Galfi of Hungary has now claimed her second career WTA 125 title, following her victory at Oeiras last month. On Saturday, Galfi dominated Rebeka Masarova of Switzerland in the final of the Catalonia Open in Vic, Spain, winning convincingly 6-3, 6-0.
This victory extends Galfi`s impressive current winning streak to 10 matches.
Galfi had a remarkably dominant week in Vic, not allowing any opponent to win more than four games in a single set throughout the tournament.
A former junior World No. 1 a decade ago, Galfi is arguably experiencing the best form of her professional career. Her strong performance is projected to elevate her back into the Top 100 of the PIF WTA Rankings.
Adding to the list of Grand Slam champions succeeding at the WTA 125 level this week, 2019 US Open winner Bianca Andreescu also secured a title in Vic.
Partnering with Aldila Sutjiadi, Andreescu won the doubles title at the Catalonia Open. They defeated the team of Lulu Sun and fellow Grand Slam finalist Leylah Fernandez 6-2, 6-4 in the final on Friday.
Rupert Caldwell