Singapore — Elina Svitolina tore up the form book to open play at the WTA Finals with a brilliant display of serving and retrieving to register a 6-3 6-3 victory over Petra Kvitova at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Sunday. The Ukrainian came into the White Group opener at the eight-woman event on the back of seven straight defeats to the big-hitting Czech, but Svitolina was able to capitalise on her opponent’s erratic play to record a stunning triumph. "I had to stay focused and be strong mentally. That was the key as she strikes the ball pretty hard and I had to react quickly and move my feet," she said. Svitolina is making her second appearance at the season-ending tournament and appeared determined to make amends for a lacklustre display a year ago when she crashed out of the tournament in the round robin phase. Both players appeared nervous at the start of the match as they struggled to find their timing on a court playing faster than ever, but Svitolina settled the quickest af...
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