Kirilenko wins Sunfeast Open

Maria Kirilenko had to wait a long time to earn her second WTA Tour singles title.

The fourth-seeded Russian cruised past unseeded Mariya Koryttseva , 6-0, 6-2, on Sunday to win the $175,000 Sunfeast Open.

It is the second career title for the 20-year-old, who had not won a singles crown since a victory at Beijing two years ago. She is the owner of three career doubles titles, including a win earlier his year in Doha.

"It's been a great week. I didn't expect the final to be so easy," Kirilenko said. Kirilenko took command right away against Koryttseva, breaking the 22-year-old Ukrainian three times during a dominate first-set victory.

In her first final appearance, the 164th-ranked Koryttseva had a better second set as she secured a break point to forge a 2-0 advantage. That was not nearly enough to rattle the world's 35th ranked player, as Kirilenko reeled off the next six games to close the match and claim the $25,855 first prize.

"I made too many errors and failed to be competitive," Koryttseva said. This was by far the best showing of the season for Kirilenko, who had just two quarterfinal appearances to her credit in 2007. Heading into the Australian Open in the beginning of the year, Kirilenko was ranked 28th in the world but her inconsistent play dropped her to 45th by the time the summer hardcourt season arrived.
However, her recent play and the victory at this Tier III hardcourt event may restore her place among the top 30.