Harriet Dart Wins First WTA Title at Guangzhou Open

British tennis player Harriet Dart won her first WTA Tour title in her career by defeating Austria's Lilli Tagger 4-6 6-3 6-4 in the Guangzhou Open final. Coming through qualifying, Dart reached a tour-level final for the first time with this result.

After saving three match points against Sun Xinran in the semifinal, Dart also put up a tough fight in the final. The 30-year-old from Hampstead lost her serve in the opening game of the first set, but she took control in the second set and forced the match into a third. In a tense final set, Tagger's 18-year-old opponent saved two break chances. Dart, however, made a forehand error into the net on the second of two championship points, but she quickly recovered and won the match.

After the match, Dart thanked her team. She made special mention of her boyfriend Stephen Falck, her fitness trainer, her family, and her coach Marion Bartoli. With this win, Dart rose to 83rd in the world rankings and returned to the WTA top 100.

Dart is also a talented doubles player. She has one WTA 250 and two WTA 125 doubles titles in her career. A established member of Britain's Billie Jean King Cup team, she has opened a new chapter in her singles career with this achievement.