Patty Schnyder overcame a slow start for the
second day in succession to capture the Uncle Tobys Hardcourts title
on Saturday.
The Swiss picked up her ninth career singles title with a 1-6 6-3 7-5 triumph
over local hero and rising star Samantha Stosur.
Just one day after surviving a three-set battle with French teenager Tatiana
Golovin, Schnyder bounced back from a terrible opening set to deny Stosur her
first career title.
The second-seeded Schnyder was able to regroup with a mix of drop shots and
groundstrokes to level in the second set.
And the match came to an end after a highly-competitive final set in which
Schnyder broke in the 11th game to secure the title.
"It was tough," Schnyder said. "Especially like the beginning she was all
over me and I had no chance to break her.
"It was a really lucky turnaround in the second set. And I well deserved the
third set I think. She (Stosur) is a great player and I'm really happy to win
such a difficult match and to win overall.
"I'm really excited about starting the year like this. It's always nice to
play five matches in a row like this and leave a place as a champion."
Stosur, who also reached the semi-finals here in 2004, is hoping to go one
step further at the tournament in 2006.
"In the first set I just didn't do anything wrong," said the 20-year-old.
"I don't think I could have really played that set much better. I had some
chances in the second set to break her in a few games and didn't get it.
"I guess it's hopefully one step at a time. I'll be back, I love playing here
so whatever happens I'll be back and hopefully I can play better and better."