Errani wins second straight title of career to Spaniard

Sara Errani had reached three quarterfinals in the first half of this year, but winning two titles in a row is much more than that. In Palermo two weeks ago, Errani captured the first title of her career, and here in the Slovenian city of Potoroz, she extended her winning streak to 10 matches, after winning Banka Koper Slovenia Open.

Seeded 8th, Errani got what she wanted at the end of the day, winning all of her matches with ease en route to the Sunday final. In the quarterfinals she faced top seed Maria Kirilenko and won 61 75, and in the semis, she played another seeded player, Caroline Wozniacki, but that wasn't much of a threat, as she also won easily 64 64. Next up was experienced Anabel Medina Garrigues, who was playing her 13th final of her career, but that didn't stop Errani from winning the the title in straight sets, 63 63.

"I think we were both tired, but we both tried hard and it was a nice match," said Errani on the final. "We know each other very well. We practice together in Valencia, and I've played her a few times before. I think she maybe struggled a bit with the long points and made some errors, which helped me today.

"The hardcourts here in Portoroz are a little bit slower, which probably helped me against aggressive players like Kirilenko and Wozniacki," Errani declared. "It was probably better for me to play against them than against Anabel today, because it made it more difficult for them to close the points out."

The 21-year-old Errani didn't point to anything in particular for her recent spike in results; just the hard work finally paying off.

"I haven't changed anything this year; I just try to practice hard every day, and the results are starting to come. At the beginning of the year I was just hoping to make it to the Olympic team and I did make it, which I'm really excited about."