TENNIS in DEPTH.

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez became the first Spanish woman since 2006 to win a hardcourt event as she triumphed at the Hansol Korea Open today. The 29-year-old left-hander from Barcelona landed her second title of 2011 – the first came on clay at Bad Gastein in July – by beating Russian Galina Voskoboeva 7-6 (7/0) 7-6 (7/2). Unseeded 26-year-old Voskoboeva coped well with her first career WTA tour final, aside from in the tie-breaks where she was overwhelmed by sixth seed Martinez Sanchez. The last Spanish player to land a WTA title on hardcourt had been Anabel Medina Garrigues in Canberra, in 2006. Champion Martinez Sanchez pointed to composure at key moments in the match as key to her success. She said, according to tour website wtatennis.com: “I felt very calm in the tie-breaks. That was the key for me. ”I felt I played well the whole match. I like coming to net and I think it also makes my opponents uncomfortable, so it works well. But Galina played well – this was my toughest match of the week. I had to fight until the end.”

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