Linda Noskova secured her maiden WTA tour title on Saturday, defeating Lulu Sun 7-6(6), 6-4 in the Monterrey Open final, providing a significant confidence boost as she prepares for the U.S. Open.
The 19-year-old Czech, ranked 35th in the world, had previously lost to Sun in the first round at Cincinnati two weeks ago. Noskova now looks forward to her US Open first-round match against world number 31 Yulia Putintseva on Tuesday.
In the opening set, Noskova broke Sun's serve early on, but the New Zealander fought back to level the match, forcing a tiebreak. Noskova saved two set points before eventually taking the set after over an hour of play.
Noskova took advantage of Sun's unforced errors in the second set, breaking her serve once more to gain a crucial lead. This advantage proved decisive, as Noskova sealed her victory in one hour and 58 minutes in the northern Mexican city.
"I was coming to this tournament not in the best mood, but it has changed a lot, it was such a great tournament for me," Noskova said.
"The circumstances and the opportunities I have had here, it was incredible for me and my career, really glad I won here and maybe I'll come back next year."
Sun, 23, will still enter the top-50 in women's singles ahead of her US Open debut. She first drew attention after reaching the quarterfinals of the Wimbledon. She will play Lucia Bronzetti in the first round of the US Open on Monday.
"Thank you to my team, it was a great week for us. Even though I lost, it was a very good week," Sun said.
