Alexandrova defeats Yastremska in superb final to win Linz Open title
The Russian came through 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 in a thrilling contest to lift her maiden Linz Open title
Ekaterina Alexandrova withstood a remarkable fightback from Dayana Yastremska to clinch her first Linz Open title, overcoming the Ukrainian 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 in a thrilling final full of huge momentum shifts and played against the backdrop of the ongoing war between the players’ two nations.
It was the Russian who eventually came out victorious on the match court after an epic two-hour and eleven minute tussle of supreme quality, winning her fifth WTA title and finally coming out on top in the Linz showpiece having lost her two previous finals at the event.
It is Alexandrova’s first title on tour since Hertogenbosch in 2023 and she levels up a tight head-to-head record against the Ukrainian to 3-3.
Yastremska, meanwhile, was left visibly and bitterly disappointed not to have clinched her fourth WTA title having fought her way back into the contest in superb style. There are positives for the Ukrainian, however, who reached her first tour final in nearly three years and once again demonstrated her enduring tenacity and quality all-round game as she looks to be getting back to her very finest form.
But as a former two-time finalist in Linz, Alexandrova evidently thrives in the quick, indoor hard-court conditions in Austria – and it showed throughout the final, especially across the first stanza, as she put together a clinical, efficient display executed with great quality.
one-sided opening set gives way to stirring comeback and excellent final
Both players felt their way into the contest with holds across the opening three games, before the Russian pounced on the first opportunity to break in the fourth game.
Alexandrova’s service game in the opening set was impeccable. She landed 100% of her first serves to completely shut out her opponent as Yastremska struggled to make any inroads into her return games.
Another hold was all the Ukrainian could muster as Alexandrova broke again in the eighth and final game to seal a dominant one-set lead.
It took the world No 30 until the opening game of the second set to miss a first serve, but Yastremska still couldn’t find her way to a break point. The Ukrainian’s first-serve win percentage was hovering damagingly low at around 50% at this juncture and Alexandrova’s pressure was unrelenting, breaking to love in the very next game to take a commanding grip over the final.
But Yastremska is one of the fiercest competitors on the WTA Tour. Steadying the ship at 3-0 down with a critical hold of serve, the Ukrainian then pounced on a first loose service game from her opponent to earn her first break of the contest and restore parity in the second set.
The break in that fifth game was the pivotal turning point at which the entire complexion of the match shifted. Yastremska’s first-serve percentage rose significantly while her opponent’s finally dipped, with the Ukrainian breaking again in the seventh and ninth games as part of a remarkable six-game winning surge to take the second set.
Suddenly Yastremska was unstoppable, firing return winners off weak second serves and using the huge momentum shift to propel herself to an extraordinary nine-game winning streak as the Ukrainian broke for a fourth time in the second game of the decider.
But that run was halted abruptly as Alexandrova held before breaking back in the fifth game to move the third set back on level pegging. A nervy seventh game saw Yastremska fend off two break points as both players held firm with some breathtaking tennis in the closing stages of the match.
Yet, as a tiebreak seemed imminent, Yastremska blinked. From 40-0 up on her serve at 5-5, the Ukrainian conceded seven points in a row as Alexandrova delivered the cruellest of sucker-punches to her opponent.
Yastremska’s indomitable spirit lasted to the very final ball. Halting that run of seven lost points, she saved four championship points before Alexandrova finally got over the line and sealed the title.
no handshake between yastremska and alexandrova
As remains the protocol in matches between Russians and Ukrainians – as the former’s full-scale invasion of the latter nears its third-year anniversary – there was no handshake between the two players at the net, and no mention from Yastremska of her opponent in her runner-up speech.
Alexandrova paid a brief tribute to the Ukrainian in her winner’s speech, before emphasising her delight at finally winning a title she had come so close to twice in the past six years.
“This tournament was always special for me – I really love playing here every time. And now, finally, I can make it to the end at the third time,” she told the Austrian crowd.
“I’m super pleased and happy, and this place is going to be special and magical for me all the time.”
Alexandrova was excellent value for her title victory in Linz this week, once again demonstrating her prowess on these courts. She leaves Austria as a deserving winner, having erased the memories of those past two final losses – one last year, and the first back in 2018.
For Yastremska, she can and will leave Linz with her head held high. She gave everything in this final and showed the level that she is capable of with a fine run to the showpiece match.
It has also been a very productive week for her in terms of ranking. Having lost most of the ranking points she earned in 2024’s run to the semi-finals of the Australian Open, Yastremska had fallen from No 33 down to No 72 in the world. But her exploits in Linz will see her rebound straight back up into the top 50.
After an emotionally charged final where there can always only be one winner, perhaps Yastremska will be able to walk away from this one feeling as though there are small victories to be enjoyed among the pain of this loss.