Stosur Wins First Title This Year in Strasbourg

STRASBOURG – Third-seeded Samantha Stosur rallied to beat Kristina Mladenovic 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the final of the Strasbourg International on Saturday, claiming her first title of the year.

The 26th-ranked Stosur, a former French Open runner-up, is returning to form after reuniting last month with former coach David Taylor.

Before Strasbourg, where she won a seventh career title, Stosur had won only eight matches in 2015. She decided to play in eastern France at the last minute and was granted a wild card by organizers.

“To play as well as I did and walk away with the title, it’s exciting, and especially going into a Grand Slam,” said Stosur, who made it to the final at Roland Garros five years ago.

Stosur dropped her serve twice in the opening set but was at her defensive best in the following sets, saving all five break points she faced.

“It was good tennis. She was playing exceptionally well in that first set,” she said. “There were some tricky moments in the third set, she had a few points to get it back on serve, but I’m happy I was able to keep it up and close it out, and it’s always nice to win a title, that’s for sure.”

The French Open starts on Sunday.

nytimes.com

Maher Taki