FILE PHOTO – Tennis – Fed Cup – Europe/Africa Group I – Pool A – Great Britain v Greece – University of Bath, Bath, Britain – February 7, 2019 Greece’s Maria Sakkari celebrates winning the first set in her match against Great Britain’s Johanna Konta Action Images via Reuters/Peter Cziborra
(Reuters) – Greek Maria Sakkari rallied from a set and a break down to beat British number one Johanna Konta 2-6 6-4 6-1 and lift her first WTA title at the Rabat Grand Prix in Morocco on Saturday.
Konta, playing in her first WTA final since June last year, did not face a single break point as she surged ahead to claim the opening set before the unforced errors crept into her game.
The world number 47 was leading 3-2 in the second set before Sakkari drew level at 4-4.
Sixth seed Sakkari reeled off the next two games to force a decider before claiming the victory with a forehand winner, guaranteeing a surge into the WTA’s top 50 when the new rankings are released on Monday.
The 23-year-old fell on her back on the red clay and went on to kiss the surface in celebration after being congratulated at the net by Konta.
It was also a positive week for Konta’s French Open preparations as her four victories this week are the first time she has claimed more than two WTA main draw wins in a row on clay in her career.
Reporting by Hardik Vyas in Bengaluru, editing by Pritha Sarkar