French player Aravane Rezai won her biggest WTA title to date after she outplayed Venus Williams in the final of the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open on Sunday. The 23-year old won in straight sets 62 75.
Rezai made her way to the title match in grand fashion, having defeated four-time Roland Garros champion Justine Henin in the first round. She also outlasted Jelena Jankovic in the quarterfinals and this time Williams in the finals.
“I had some opportunities, but she played really well. When someone plays that well you have to give them credit. Sometimes you run into a player who’s red hot. They hit every shot, they don’t miss. All the credit to her,” Williams said.
Williams was gunning for her tenth career claycourt title. Despite losing this bid, she still received a bit of good news. She will become the world number two player once the new ranking stats are released this week. This means she and sister Serena will clinch the top two seedings in next week’s French Open.
