To conclude the 22nd edition of the Coupe Banque Nationale, the singles and doubles finals were presented today on the Banque Nationale central court of Laval University’s PEPS.
World number 121 Mirjana Lucic-Baroni from Croatia and first seed and world number 20 Venus Williams, from the United States, were featured today in the singles final. In the two previous encounters between the two players, at the US Open in 2002 and at Florianopolis in 2013, 34-year-old Williams was victorious. It was the first participation at the Coupe Banque Nationale for Williams but a sixth consecutive one for Lucic-Baroni. In her previous participations however, she had never done better than a second round.
The two athletes offered a solid performance but Lucic-Baroni was on top of her game and won in two sets of 6-4, 6-3. Crowned singles champion of the Coupe Banque Nationale, it was the Croatian’s third WTA singles title but her first in 16 years.
In a press meeting after her match, Lucic-Baroni said she was extremely happy to have won the Coupe Banque Nationale, after a perfect week in Quebec City. She mentioned she had almost forgotten the feeling that comes with the victory but she sees this win as the reward for all the efforts she has put in lately. Although competing against an athlete like Venus Williams is a difficult task, she was very focused and kept her eyes on the win.
In the doubles final presented this afternoon, the duo formed of Czech Republic’s Lucie Hradecka and Croatia’s Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, third seeds, faced the second seeds Julia Goerges from Germany and Andrea Hlavackova from Czech Republic. The Hradecka/Lucic-Baroni team, who was playing doubles together for the first time, defeated the Goerges/Hlavackova duo in two sets of 6-3 and 7-6(8). This became Hradecka’s 18th doubles title while it was a third for Lucic-Baroni. It is the first time in the Coupe Banque Nationale’s history, that the same player wins the singles and doubles titles.
The 23rd edition of the Coupe Banque Nationale will be presented next year from September 5 to 13, 2015 at Laval University’s PEPS.