WUHAN — Britain's Sonay Kartal missed out on the biggest title of her career as she was beaten 2-6 6-4 6-2 by Poland's Maja Chwalinska in the Wuhan Open final on Sunday. The 24-year-old, who will become British number one on Monday, faded physically and mentally after a dominant start as the French Open runner-up claimed her first WTA 1,000 title.
Kartal, ranked 170th in the world at the start of the event, was contesting only her third tournament since returning from a six-month absence caused by a back injury and just the 10th match of her comeback. She dominated the opening set and led by a break in the second, but Chwalinska, 25, dragged her into a brutal battle and turned momentum in her favour to force a decider.
Chwalinska, who made a shock run to this year's Roland Garros final, felt a few nerves as she closed in on victory but secured the title on her third championship point when Kartal hammered a forehand long. Kartal had reached the final by seeing off a host of notable opponents, including current top-10 players and former major champions, and was attempting to become the first Briton to win a WTA 1,000 title since Johanna Konta in 2017.
Despite defeat, it was a transformational week for Kartal which even she did not see coming. On Monday she will climb to 50th in the world rankings, just below her career high, and become British number one for the first time.