Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia beat Maria Kirilenko of Russia 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-3 in a hard-fought final to defend her title at the Pattaya Open. Third-seeded Hantuchova took 3 hours, 14 minutes to win her fifth career title, and first since winning in Thailand a year ago. Kirilenko had already spent more than 9½ hours on court just to get to the final, which was her first on the WTA Tour in nearly 16 months. The Russian double-faulted to give Hantuchova the crucial break and a 5-3 lead in the deciding set. Hantuchova closed out the win with help of two forehand winners down the line. Kerber upstages Bartoli In Paris, Angelique Kerber of Germany won the WTA Paris Open Sunday by defeating France's Marion Bartoli 7-6 (7-3), 5-7, 6-3 in the final. The world No. 27, who conquered top seed Maria Sharapova in Friday's quarterfinals, became the first German champion at the event since Steffi Graf in 1995. It was the 24-year-old's first win on the main WTA circuit, her previous best being a runner-up finish in Bogota in 2010. Prior to coming to Paris, she had never beaten a top-10 player. It was the first time in five attempts that the 27-year-old Bartoli, the second seed, had reached the final in her home tournament. “It's incredible,” said Kerber. “I don't know what to say. The match was so tough but I fought on all the big points. It's been a fantastic week.” Bartoli was in tears by the time of the post-match presentations. “I pushed myself all the way but it was not enough,” she said after the 2hr 39min final.
