TENNIS in DEPTH.

Caroline Wozniacki claimed the Dubai Championships title after a comprehensive 6-1 6-3 final win over Russia’s Svetlana Kuznetsova. The Dane went through the entire tournament without dropping a set on her way to her 13th career WTA title. And the 20-year-old is expected to keep her place at the top of the world rankings for at least four weeks.

World number 23 Kuznetsova, who endured her third loss in the Dubai final, had no answer to Wozniacki’s powerful game. However, she is expected to climb 10 places when the new rankings are published on Monday.

Wozniacki dominated proceedings from the very start, taking a 2-0 lead before winning four successive games to claim the first set. Kuznetsova saved two match points at 5-2 in the second set but her resistance eventually relented in the ninth game as Wozniacki sealed victory in 75 minutes. I definitely went for my shots,” said Wozniacki, who attacked the net on numerous occasions during the final.

“It’s paying off now. I’m definitely playing better than I have been before.”

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Robin Soderling claimed his third title of the year as he came from a set behind to beat Marin Cilic in the final of the Open 13 in Marseille. The top-seeded Swede, whose only defeat of 2011 came against Alexandr Dolgopolov in the Australian Open, surrendered the first set on a tie-break before taking the next two 6-3 to claim the title. Croatia’s Cilic hit 16 aces to Soderling’s 12 but also double faulted five times and made just 57 per cent of his first serves. Soderling, meanwhile, converted five of eight break points as he added to his successes this year in Brisbane and Rotterdam.

He said: “It’s of course a very nice feeling. Winning three tournaments in four tries is something I’ve never been close to before. “It’s the best possible start. I’ve won many matches and only lost one, unfortunately in the fourth round in Melbourne. It’s a great start and I really hope it can continue this way.”

Cilic was pleased with his week in Marseille. “I’m really pleased with this week and also the past two or three weeks, starting with the Australian Open,” he said. “That shows me I’m a little bit more in the game and playing better. It’s, of course, a little bit of a relief to come to the final after almost a year. I think I played well all week. There is no reason why I should stop here.”

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Andy Roddick set up a final meeting with Canadian wildcard Milos Raonic at the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships with a victory over Juan Martin Del Potro. The top-seeded American claimed a 6-3 6-4 victory in one hour 34 minutes. Roddick was dominant on serve in the opening set, losing just one point on his first serve. He was unable to maintain that level in the second, winning just 36% of points on his second serve, but two breaks helped earn him victory.

Raonic continued his excellent run in Memphis as he knocked out fourth seed Mardy Fish in three sets in the other semi-final. The 20-year-old sent down 23 aces, including 10 each in the opening two sets, on his way to a 6-4 4-6 6-3 success.

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Magdalena Rybarikova won her second WTA title Saturday night, earning a 62 retirement victory over Rebecca Marino in the final of the Cellular South Cup. Rybarikova was the underdog against No.6 seed Marino, the Canadian wowing the crowds all week with her big serve and composure. But something was clearly wrong in the final, as Rybarikova took the first set in 27 minutes. “It first happened in the semifinals against Rodina,” Marino said of her left abdominal injury. “As I kept playing today it got worse and worse. I’m upset I had to retire in the finals but I didn’t want to make the injury worse. If this injury gets worse, it’s an injury that would take a long time to recover from.”

The polite Canadian was apologetic to the crowd during the trophy ceremony: “I love this tournament. I’m sorry I couldn’t give you guys a better match,” she said. “Magdalena played great the whole week though. She deserves to win.” “I’m very sorry for Rebecca,” Rybarikova commented. “I didn’t know she was injured, but I could tell when she was playing something wasn’t right. But still, congratulations to her on a great week. I saw her play a good match against Schiavone in Australia, very aggressive like Kvitova. She’ll be a great player.”

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Milos Raonic has reached his second straight final in an ATP Tour event.

Raonic held off No. 4 Mardy Fish 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 to move into the Memphis final, where he’ll face either top-seed Andy Roddick or Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina.

Raonic’s powerful serve overwhelmed Fish, firing 23 aces to only three from his opponent.

The Thornhill, Ont., native won an ATP Tour tournament for the first time last weekend in San Jose.

Raonic, 20, is set to move into the Top 50 of the ATP rankings. Just a year ago he was ranked No. 361 at a Challenger event in Belgrade.

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Marin Cilic will meet top seed Robin Soderling in the final of the ATP Tour Open 13 on Sunday after both emerged victorious in their respective semi-finals. Unseeded Croatian Cilic, who had stunned second-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych 6-3 6-4 on Friday, continued his return to form with a battling 6-2 1-6 7-5 triumph over third seed Mikhail Youzhny.

Sweden’s world number four Soderling cruised past another Russian, Dmitry Tursunov, 7-5 6-1, and has yet to drop a set in the Marseille event this year. World number 28 Cilic faced a match-point at 3-5 in the third set but held his nerve and went on to advance to his ninth Tour final – his first since May, when he lost to Youzhny in Munich. “In the second set and the beginning of the third he was playing really good and it wasn’t easy to stay in there and wait for a chance. I had to make some kind of a change, which I did, and it was really good from my perspective that this win comes from a good fight and great mentality.”

He will have his work cut out to clinch the title, though, with Soderling on an eight-match winning streak after capturing his second Tour title of the season last week in Rotterdam. “It’s not too bad,” reflected the 26-year-old Swede. “I won many matches and I beat a lot of good players.

“It feels really good and hopefully it can continue this way for a while.”

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The top-seeded Wozniacki earned her first victory against Jankovic despite falling behind 3-0, 4-1 and 5-3 in the first set. The sixth-seeded Serb, who came from behind in her two previous matches, missed four set points while serving at 5-3. Wozniacki broke after Jankovic hit long and reeled off the next three games to win the set. “I just kept fighting,” Wozniacki said. “I had a good feeling going into the match even though I started off a little slower today. She started off well and I made a few mistakes. But then I felt like I started to hit the ball really well. I was thinking if she wins this match it’s just too good because I’m starting to feel this right now.” In the second set, Wozniacki settled into long rallies and relentless chasing to wear down the eighth-ranked Serb, whom she had not beaten on four previous occasions.

After Wozniacki broke for 3-2, Jankovic asked for a medical timeout for a blister on her left foot. She returned to break back only to see Wozniacki return the favor, and win the next two games. “It was tough. I had a lot of opportunities in that first set, and I kind of let them slip a way,” Jankovic said. “I let her rally, you know, in those points. There were some really long rallies that suit her. She was, you know, the better one at the end. She was just too solid.”

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Andy Roddick booked his place in the semi-finals of the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships after coming from a set down to beat fellow former world number one Lleyton Hewitt in Memphis. The top seed saw off his Australian opponent 4-6 6-3 6-4 in two hours 13 minutes. The American served 21 aces, nine in the deciding set, and did not face a single break point in the last two sets as he turned the match around. Fourth seed Mardy Fish also made it through to the last four with a 6-3 6-4 success over fifth seed and fellow American Sam Querrey. Fish took advantage of his opponents’ second serve – Querrey won just 33% of points on it – to clinch victory in one hour 19 minutes.

Canadian wildcard Milos Raonic saved eight of the nine break points he faced on the way to a 6-4 3-6 6-3 win over Robert Kendrick of the USA.

Juan Martin Del Potro was the final player into the semi-finals, the Argentinian sweeping aside American qualifier Michael Russell 6-4 6-2.

In the Cellular South Cup, sixth-seeded Canadian Rebecca Marino set up a final meeting with Slovakian Magdalena Rybarikova. Marino fought back from a set down to defeat Russia’s Evgeniya Rodina 6-7 (1/7) 6-4 6-1. Rybarikova was also taken to three sets as she saw off Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic 6-2 4-6 6-4.

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