Maria crowned first Queen's Club women's champion in 52 years
German qualifier Tatjana Maria capped an incredible week in London as she defeated American eighth seed Amanda Anisimova 6-3 6-4 on Sunday to become the first woman to win a title at Queen's Club in over half a century.
The victory marked the end of an extraordinary nine-day stretch for the mother-of-two, ranked 86 in the world, having stunned second seed and Australian Open champion Madison Keys in the previous round.
The 37-year-old becomes the oldest player to claim a WTA title since Serena Williams in Auckland 2020. She dropped only one set en route to the title and her dream run also included victories over Kazakh fourth seed Elena Rybakina and Czech sixth seed Karolina Muchova.
Maria dominated Anismova with big serves and earned an early break in the first set. She won 12 points in a row as she raced to a 4-1 lead and then held off a brief Anisimova fightback to close out the set.
Maria carried her momentum into the second as she again surged into a 4-1 lead. Her seventh ace of the match helped her move up 5-3, and she served out the match two games later to clinch her first title in over two years.
"A dream come true. (When) I came here, I was never thinking I could hold the trophy at the end. When we arrived my little girl said 'wow that's a nice trophy, so big' and I said 'OK let's go for it I will try to win it'," Maria said.
"In the end I've won it, it's incredible. So happy. Everything is possible if you believe in it. You go your way, doesn't matter which it is but you have to keep going. I want to show this to my kids and hopefully they are proud. It's amazing."
Maria threw her arms up as she watched Anisimova's forehand sail wide on match point, before both players shared an affectionate embrace at the net.
"I wouldn't be surprised if we see you in the Wimbledon final because you really had me running out there today," Anisimova said.
Having started the week as world number 86, Maria is projected to move up to world number 43 when the new rankings are released on Monday.
The Wimbledon warm-up event at Queen's welcomed back female competitors for the first time since 1973, when the Soviet Union's Olga Morozova won the title.
Wimbledon runs from June 30 to July 13.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gulf Today
4 hours ago
- Gulf Today
'Moving Great Wall:' China unleash towering teen basketball star
China look set to unleash their 2.26m (7ft 5in) "moving Great Wall" at the Women's Asia Cup after teenager Zhang Ziyu put in another towering display days after her debut. The 18-year-old centre scored 18 points as China beat great rivals Japan 101-92 on Wednesday in Xi'an in a warm-up for the regional tournament next month on home soil. It was her third appearance for the senior Chinese squad, having helped them to blowout victories over Bosnia and Herzegovina over the weekend. Chinese state media dubbed her and gangly centre Han Xu the "Twin Towers." Zhang's looming presence on court — footage showed her barely needing to jump to make a basket — seemed to stump Japan head coach Corey Gaines. Asked if he had figured out a way "to deal" with the teenager, the American ex-NBA guard told reporters: "We'll just say: Interesting. Very interesting." Zhang Ziyu (#28) shoots as Japan's Azusa Asahina (#14/R) blocks during a warm-up game in Xian. AFP Zhang hails from northern China's Shandong province and had reached 2.10m by the end of primary school. She has been likened by Chinese fans to Houston Rockets great Yao Ming. Yao, who at 2.29m was one of the tallest NBA players in history, was known as the "moving Great Wall" before retiring from basketball in 2011 and Zhang has now taken on the nickname. Both of Zhang's parents played professional basketball. Her father, Zhang Lei, turned out for the Chinese Basketball Association's Jinan Military Region while her mother Yu Ying played as a centre for Shandong, according to local media. Zhang Ziyu (#28) shoots as Japan's Miwa Kuribayashi (#77) and Nanako Todo (#75) try to block during a warm-up game. AFP The teenager may have a distinct height advantage but she has been told she needs to sharpen up. Experienced centre Yang Liwei said after Wednesday's win that Zhang "could have been tougher on some shots". "I think she played at her normal level," added Yang, who helped China win the Asian title in 2023. China meet Japan again on Friday at home for another warm-up. Both will play at the Women's Asia Cup in Shenzhen from July 13. Agence France-Presse
Dubai Eye
2 days ago
- Dubai Eye
Draper revs up for Wimbledon with tough win over Popyrin at Queen's
Briton Jack Draper once viewed himself as a Ferrari with reliability issues but the world number six said on Wednesday his hard work away from the court has given him the engine to cope with the physical demands of the Grand Slams. Draper ramped up his Wimbledon preparations by shrugging off illness and battling from a set down at the Queen's Club Championships to beat Australia's Alexei Popyrin 3-6 6-2 7-6(5) and set up a quarter-final against American Brandon Nakashima. The 23-year-old is seen as his country's big hope at the Grand Slams following the retirement of three-time major winner Andy Murray last year, and he is enjoying his best season on tour after winning an ATP 1000 title at Indian Wells in March. "I've always worked really hard off the court," said Draper, who also reached last year's US Open semi-finals. "That's helped me play more consistently on the tour. I've felt better and better every Grand Slam I have played. "Before, I felt my energy wasn't that strong and I felt I looked like a bit of a Ferrari but I was a bit of a Toyota, like broke down quite easy," he joked. "Now I'm starting to feel generally stronger and confident in myself." Draper's run in the London tune-up event means that he will be seeded fourth at Wimbledon, which begins on June 30. "My goal is to peak at Wimbledon," he added. "I've been hitting the ball better and better in practice, but sometimes that doesn't necessarily adjust to the match court straightaway. "The tennis I know I can play and the tennis that's got me to the position I'm in, there is still a lot of improvement to come."
Gulf Today
2 days ago
- Gulf Today
Jabeur stuns Paolini at Berlin as Zverev eases into Halle 2nd round
Last year's Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine Paolini got off to a losing start in her first grass-court match of 2025, a straight-sets loss to Ons Jabeur. Jabeur, a Wimbledon finalist in 2022 and 2023, beat the fourth-seeded Paolini 6-1, 6-3 in the second round of the Berlin Tennis Open on Wednesday after the Italian had a first-round bye. Jabeur could face 2023 Wimbledon winner Marketa Vondrousova or Diana Shnaider in the quarterfinals of the tournament. Paolini was playing for the first time since winning the French Open doubles title with fellow Italian Sara Errani. Paolini lost to Elina Svitolina in the fourth round of the French Open singles. Meanwhile, Alexander Zverev's hunt for an elusive grasscourt title began with a clinical 6-2 6-1 victory over Marcos Giron in the first round of the Halle Open on Wednesday in a match interrupted by an advertising hoarding falling on spectators. During the opening set, a section of an advertising hoarding came crashing down from the upper tier onto spectators below, forcing the chair umpire to stop play. Zverev immediately procured an ice pack for an elderly woman who pressed it against her neck and the players waited patiently while tournament organisers scrambled to provide medical assistance. Organisers said the 62-year-old did not suffer any major injuries and was able to leave the stadium after the initial shock, but she was taken to hospital as a precaution. They added that drumming against the boards may have caused the screws to come loose. 'There has never been anything like this in our 32-year tournament history. We deeply regret the incident,' tournament director Ralf Weber said in a statement. On court, Zverev finished the match with 23 winners in the 79-minute contest where Giron struggled to match the power of the German's first serve and had no answer when his opponent's returns found all corners of the court. World number three Zverev, still nursing the disappointment of Sunday's Stuttgart Open final defeat by Taylor Fritz, showed no mercy with the home fans firmly behind the towering second seed who has finished runner-up twice in Halle. 'It was a great match for me, I thought it was quite high level. Maybe he wanted to play a bit better than he did, but all in all I felt like I didn't let him play that well, which was important for me,' Zverev said. Agencies
