Savinykh claims biggest title in six years on ITF World Tennis Tour

Valeria Savinykh won her biggest title in six years on the ITF World Tennis Tour after triumphing at W40 Palma del Rio.

The 32-year-old defeated players on both ends of the experience scale to reach the final – overcoming rising star Alexandra Eala and former world No. 26 Tamira Paszek in back-to-back matches to earn a spot in the final, where she saw off Frenchwoman Harmony Tan 7-5 6-3.

It was Savinykh’s 10th ITF singles crown and her most significant title since she triumphed on Turkish soil at W60 Artvin in October 2017. 

Savinykh is a former world No. 99, having cracked the Top 100 in 2012 - a year after winning her first (and biggest career title to date) at W100 Johannesburg.

Elsewhere this weekend, there were also good wins for Petra Marcinko, who collected her second title of the month on Italian soil at W25 Tarvisio, and 17-year-old Luca Udvardy, who claimed her first professional singles title as a qualifier on Dutch soil at W15 Alkmaar. 

The younger sister of fellow professional Panna, Udvardy finished runner-up in the Wimbledon girls' singles event last year.

Click here for all the weekend's results on the ITF World Tennis Tour