AMANDA Anisimova defeated Linda Noskova 6-0, 2-6, 6-2 on Sunday to win the China Open for her second title of a breakthrough season.
The third-seeded American required one hour and 46 minutes to overcome the Czech 26th seed in Beijing.
She claimed the trophy in the Chinese capital nearly one month after reaching the US Open final.
The 24-year-old becomes the third American to win the China Open following last year’s champion Coco Gauff and Serena Williams.
Anisimova collapsed to the hard court in celebration, lying on her back with her hands covering her face.
She began the match ruthlessly by winning the first set in just 23 minutes without dropping a single game.
A defiant Noskova found her rhythm in the second set, breaking early and powering to a 5-2 lead before closing it out.
Both players battled intensely in the deciding set until Anisimova broke for a 4-2 advantage.
She reached the finish line with a winner on her first match point after digging deep mentally.
This victory marks another highlight in a stellar season for the world number four, who was also runner-up at Wimbledon.
Anisimova has significantly improved her ranking from world number 43 this time last year.
She reached the final by defeating second seed Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-2 in a dominant 58-minute semi-final performance.
Noskova entered the tournament as world number 27 and was competing in her first WTA 1000 final. – AFP