Australian teenager Maya Joint saves four match points to win Eastbourne title
Australia's Maya Joint saved four match points before beating Alexandra Eala 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (10) to win the Eastbourne title in a gripping final on Saturday.
Four times Eala, the first player from the Philippines to reach a WTA Tour final, was a point away from victory in the final-set tie-break but Joint dug deep to prevail. The 19-year-old Joint showed tremendous resilience to stay alive and when she earned her second match point at 11-10 made no mistake, drilling a backhand crosscourt winner.
While it was joy for Joint, who claimed her second WTA title in her last four events, having won her maiden crown in Rabat on clay, the pain was too much for the 20-year-old Eala, who went off court in tears to compose herself before the ceremony.
'We will definitely play in more finals,' Joint said after the youngest Eastbourne final by combined age since 1981.
Jessica Pegula, the top seed, captured her third title of the season with a 6-4, 7-5 victory over the fourth-seeded Iga Swiatek in the final of the Bad Homburg Open in Germany. Pegula overcame nine aces by the Pole and saved the only break point she faced to win the match in one hour and 46 minutes.
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The American captured her second career grass-court title by defeating Swiatek for the fourth time in their last six matches. Pegula also prevented the five-time grand slam winner from securing her first title on grass and her first tournament victory overall since the 2024 French Open.
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