HONG KONG — Nineteen-year-old Victoria Mboko captured the second WTA title of her career after defeating Spain’s Cristina Bucsa in a gruelling Hong Kong Open final yesterday.

Mboko triumphed 7–5, 6–7 (9/11), 6–2 at Victoria Park to add the Hong Kong crown to her breakthrough Canadian Open victory in August.

Ranked a career-high 21st in the world, the Canadian teenager had overcome 2021 US Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez in three sets during Saturday’s semi-finals.

Against the 27-year-old Bucsa, ranked 68th, Mboko’s powerful serve and heavy ground strokes proved decisive over nearly three hours.

“It’s been an incredible week,” said Mboko, who was ranked 350 at the end of last year and had her father watching from the crowd. “Wow, what a match, I’m so tired right now. Cristina really pushed me to my limits.”

Mboko broke serve to claim the opening set, led 3–0 in the second, and despite Bucsa saving a championship point in the tie-break, she regained control in the decider to seal victory when Bucsa’s return hit the net.

Elsewhere in China, Russia’s Anna Blinkova won the Jiangxi Open with a 6–3, 6–3 win over Austria’s Lilli Tagger.