Alexandra Dulgheru joked that she only beat Kimiko Date-Krum in the Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge final to keep up the tournament’s tradition of having a different singles champion each year.
Dulgheru became the 17th different winner in as many years of the tournament’s existence as she overcame the evergreen Date-Krumm, who at 44 was trying to become the first two-time Habtoor champion.
The sixth-seeded Romanian climbed from a break down in the second set to clinch the title with a 6-3, 6-4 win over her opponent and make sure that she ends her season inside the top-100.
“She’s a legend,” Dulgheru said of Date-Krumm. “I’m always happy to play against her.. Today I struggled a lot and there were moments I had to give everything to win against her. She’s unbelievable at her age.”
Dulgheru was ranked as high as 26 in the world in 2011 but later missed a year because of surgery to her right knee. An inconsistent 2014 followed as she battled various injuries and the 25-year-old was glad she found form in Dubai.
“This was my last tournament of the year so it’s nice to finish with a win,” Dulgheru added.
“It feels really good to finish the season inside the top-100 because after my knee surgery I had another surgery and other problems after that so it’s nice.
“This year I also stopped a lot of times so I knew that every time I could find my continuity I could find my rhythm and my confidence so I’m really happy for this tournament. Even if I hadn’t won, all these matches are really good for me.”
Date-Krumm created break points early on but she couldn’t convert and it was Dulgheru who broke ahead in the eighth game courtesy of a double fault from the Japanese.
The @HabtoorTennis Challenge finalists Dulgheru and Date-Krumm pic.twitter.com/OBGEG05JtY
— Reem Abulleil (@ReemAbulleil) November 15, 2014
The No6 seed took the set with a backhand winner down the line.
Date-Krumm, winner in 2012, tried to mix up her game with clever slices and drop shots and broke for a 4-2 lead in the second set. But she was visibly in pain, cringing between points indicating she had exacerbated the thigh injury that sidelined her for a month leading up to the competition.
Dulgheru broke back to draw level and got the crucial break in game nine before serving out the championship with another signature backhand.
Date-Krumm admits that her thigh problem bothered her a little but is happy she was able to reach the final after she considered retiring from the sport while injured last month.
“Of course it’s disappointing because you don’t reach a final many times a year. It’s important to finish the week with a win but my power wasn’t enough today. Five matches in five days at my age is not easy. Last night I slept for 10 hours but it was still not enough,” said Date-Krumm, who flew to Japan right away to take part in the $75K tournament in Toyota.
“My body is breaking down a bit. Even though I lost, I should be happy that I made the final. Last month I was thinking about retiring because my injury wasn’t getting fixed for a long time, so I’m very happy to be here.”
