Wickmayer secures back-to-back W100 crowns and a Surbiton double
Yanina Wickmayer won her second W100 title in a row on the ITF World Tennis Tour after fending off home favourite Katie Swan in the final at W100 Surbiton.
Wickmayer trailed Swan by a set and a break but fought back to win 2-6 6-4 7-6(1) and claim her 20th professional singles title – the first of her career on grass.
The former world No. 12, whose win at W100 Trnava in May marked her biggest tournament triumph since she returned to tennis following the birth of her daughter, Luana, in April 2021, was quick to repeat the feat as the Tour turned to grass.
This time though, she won seven matches on the bounce, coming through qualifying and seeing off four British players in the process - including an impressive turnaround triumph over Swan - for her third title of the year.
Swan, who climbed 28 places in the rankings as a result of a strong week that included victories over 2022 Wimbledon semi-finalist Tatjana Maria and a 6-1 6-0 blitz of compatriot Lily Miyazaki, couldn't quite polish it off with her first grass court trophy.
“I feel like it was a high-level match all the way through,” reflected Swan on court afterwards.
“It was tough because as soon as I dropped my levels slightly she was all over me and I had to maintain that for as long as I could. It was so tough but it was really high level overall.
“She is in unbelievable shape,” Swan added of the 33-year-old Belgian. “I don’t know how she can be that good after having a baby. I think it’s incredible what she’s doing.”
First 100k final in Surbiton! Tough end to a great week. Loved the support and pumped for the next one ❤️🔥 pic.twitter.com/EJGCtTDKCJ
— Katie Swan (@Katieswan99) June 11, 2023
Wickmayer topped off her perfect week in Surbiton by winning the doubles title alongside Sophie Chang - her fifth doubles crown of the year on the ITF World Tennis Tour, and her most significant since she partnered Kristina Mladenovic to the title at the WTA event in Seoul in September 2022.
Wickmayer climbed to No. 114 in the WTA singles rankings on Monday – her highest position in over four years.
Discover all the weekend's results from the ITF World Tennis Tour this weekend here