Marino loving life on Tour after W100 Ilkley triumph
Rebecca Marino claimed the joint-biggest title of her career on the ITF World Tennis Tour after reigning supreme on grass at W100 Ilkley on Sunday.
The 33-year-old Canadian defeated Jessika Ponchet 4-6 6-1 6-4 in the final to emulate her maiden W100 triumph on Mexican soil in Irapuato in February.
"I'm so happy to win the title here,” said Marino. “It’s difficult to say at the start of the week as grass can be unpredictable but I felt pretty confident coming in. It suits both our games really well and I think we can both be proud of the week as a whole.”
The world No. 140 had never won a title on grass prior to last week – with all 14 of her previous tournament victories at ITF level coming on hard courts – but she proved assured on the surface throughout her week in Yorkshire.
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The Canadian's late career surge is all-the-more special given she spent nearly five years away from tennis between 2013 and 2018.
During that time she worked on her physical and mental well-being, studied English Literature at the University of British Colombia and competed on the varsity rowing team there.
"It’s hard to look back and know that I took so long off the sport because I’m just loving being on the tour so much more nowadays,” she reflected. “Having that time off has allowed me to reflect and in my career 2.0 I’m really proud of the comeback and being able to get to this level."
Marino was joined in the ITF winner's circle this weekend by Anna Bondar, who won at W75 Olomouc, and Turkiye's Berfu Cengiz, who won her third title of the year at W50 Ystad.
Bondar climbs 13 spots back into the WTA Top 100 at No. 93 as a result of her triumph, while Cengiz climbs 30 places to No. 250.
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