Upwardly mobile Radwanska takes Shenzhen Open title

Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska triumphed in the final of the Shenzhen Open, beating American Alison Riske 6-3, 6-2 to claim her 18th WTA title.
By reaching the Shenzhen final Radwanska ensured that she will unseat Russian Maria Sharapova as world number four when the new WTA rankings are announced on Monday.

Radwanska, the 2012 Wimbledon runner-up, and winner of the WTA finals in Singapore in November, did not lose a set at the $500,000 tournament in the southern Chinese boom town.

Ranked 92 places above Riske, she routed the American in an hour and 16 minutes in Saturday's final.

"I think Alison was really playing solid tennis... but my serve really helped me today," Radwanska was reported as saying by the WTA website.

"Also in the deciding points I was a little bit better, and I think that's why the score was the way it was - it made it look easier than the actual match was," she added.

Her Shenzhen performance means she will be seeded among the top four at the Australian Open which begins on January 18.

"It's the beginning of the year, so we're all fresh compared to the end of the year. I'm feeling good," she said.

The Polish powerhouse has won 22 of her 26 matches since the US Open.
Source: AFP