ZHUHAI, November 5, 2017
Julia Goerges is the 2017 Hengqin Life WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai champion after a 7-5, 6-1 win over CoCo Vandeweghe in Sunday’s final of the season-ending event.
The win marked the biggest title of the 29-year-old German’s career and was made all the more special by the presence of her idol, countrywoman Steffi Graf, who was in Zhuhai to watch the final and be part of the trophy presentation party.
Julia Goerges and Steffi Graf (photo: OSports)
“I can’t imagine a better ending to this season; two titles in two weeks and this is the biggest one,” said Goerges in her speech on court.
This was the fourth career WTA Tour title for Goerges, her second of this year and her second in succession. Goerges qualified late for the 12-player field in Zhuhai by winning the Kremlin Cup two weeks ago. Her victory in Zhuhai means that she will end this year on a nine-match winning streak and having achieved the best season of her career so far.
She follows in the footsteps of previous WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai singles champions Venus Williams (2015) and Petra Kvitova (2016).
Prior to winning in Moscow, Goerges had not won a title in six years. Her previous titles were in Bad Gastein (2010), Stuttgart (2011) and Moscow (2017).
Goerges will move up to a career high of 14 in the year-end WTA Rankings and has improved her chances of a Top 16 seeding for January’s Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of 2018.
“I think there is no better way to end this season. It’s been a great season. I have had a lot of tough losses in Grand Slams this year where I had to get over it, but I still continued to work hard and still continued to believe in my team and my work,” Goerges was happy afterwards.
“Well, at the end it paid off, and I’m just happy. I think I have not really any words to describe right now. I think I still can’t believe it a little bit. Well, I probably, when I go back to Germany and really have some days off, it will start to sink in what I have achieved this year.”
“I got two new titles in, yeah, three weeks. Well, it’s just amazing. There’s nothing else to say.”
