Elena Dementieva might not have had the flash or glamour of opponent Maria Sharapova in today’s Rogers Cup tennis final, but she still came out on top in the all-Russian final.
Dementieva led early and never trailed, capitalizing on a terrible start by her weary opponent and the predictable high number of double faults to post a 6-4, 6-3 triumph in just over two hours at the Rexall Centre.
Sharapova lost the first eight points of the match, including three double faults, and was down 4-1 after only 16 minutes of play. But she soldiered on in her third match in 37 hours, fighting through her error prone game to grind it out and forced Dementieva to serve out the match in the second set.
On the third match point, Sharapova’s ill-advised drop shot attempt fell into the net, and Dementieva dropped to her knees, thrilled to defeat an opponent who shellacked her at the 2008 Australian Open.
Even in defeat, Sharapova could take solace in the fact it was her best tournament performance since missing nine months due to right shoulder surgery. Her season last year ended after the Rogers Cup in Montreal.
“It’s nice to hold a trophy. It feels like it’s been a long while,” said Sharapova while lifting the second place.
“It’s a little one, but still something.”
Dementieva, having beaten both Sharapova and Serena Williams en route to the title here, now looms as a serious contender for the U.S. Open crown next month. She has never won a Grand Slam title.
Mahesh Bhupathi and his Bahamian partner Mark Knowles continued their rampaging form to lift their fourth ATP title together, beating seventh seeds Max Mirnyi and Andy Ram in straight sets in the finals of $3 million Rogers Cup.