Rolland Garros – Na Li makes history with French Open

eurosport.yahoo.com Sixth seed Na Li became the first Chinese player to win a Grand Slam singles title when she beat Francesca Schiavone 6-4 7-6 at the French Open final at Roland Garros. The Chinese was in control for the vast majority of the match, pushing defending champion Schiavone deep behind the baseline and dictating the rallies, and only stuttering briefly during the second set thanks to a brilliant patch of play from the Italian. Li, who also reached the Australian Open final earlier this year before losing to Kim Clijsters, will reach a career-high of five when the new world rankings are released on Monday. On a humid day in Paris, Li played her second Grand Slam final to perfection for the first set and a half, executing almost every shot she went for and making light of Schiavone’s wicked spin as she hit through the ball to pepper the baseline. Seemingly cruising at a set and 4-2 up, Li was forced to survive a spirited fightback from the irrepressible Schiavone but did so with aplomb, racing through the tie-break to wrap up the title after one hour and 48 minutes when the Italian hit long.
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