Rybarikova defeats Li for first Tour title

No. 4 seed Li Na was the favorite in the final of the AEGON Classic, but it turned out that her opponent, No. 13 seed Magdalena Rybarikova, was in better form on Sunday, as she won first Sony Ericsson WTA Tour in Birmingham.

Rybarikova took out the top seed in the tournament earlier in the week, and she demolished Na, with a score of 60 76(2).

"It's the best feeling in my career. It's unbelievable. It's like a dream," Rybarikova said. "I've always liked grass. I have a good serve, forehand and volley - I think it's my best surface, for sure. I won the first set easily today but I knew the second set would be tougher. I was very nervous in the tie-break."

"I was missing a lot today. It was much different than my match yesterday," said Li, who pulled off her first win in six meetings against Maria Sharapova in the semifinals. "Yesterday was such a big win for me. I was still thinking about that and not thinking enough about today. She played really well though."

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Singles - Final

(13) Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK) d. (4) Li Na (CHN) 60 76(2)