Zeynep Sonmez of Turkey roared past American Ann Li 6-2, 6-1 on Sunday to capture the first WTA title of her career in Merida, Mexico, on Sunday. Sonmez, 22, became the first Turkish player to lift a WTA trophy since Cagla Buyukakcay won in Istanbul in 2016 to become the first champion from the country.
World Number 127 Sonmez needed just 70 minutes to overcome Li, a former top-50 player now ranked 111th. Sonmez gained her third break of the opening set for a 5-2 lead and pocketed the set after 42 minutes.
She broke Li three times in the second set, winning the last six games to polish off the dominant victory. “It was one of my biggest dreams. I’ve been working for this day for 15 years,” said Sonmez, who also thanked “the people who saw me in Turkey at four in the morning.”
Both players pulled double duty on Sunday after rain delays on Saturday.
Li completed a 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 victory over Polina Kudermetova in their rain-delayed semi-final while Sonmez rallied from 4-2 down in the first set to beat 17-year-old Alina Korneeva 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 in their semi-final.
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