Marta Kostyuk clinched the very first WTA 1000 title of her career at the Madrid Open.
The Ukrainian, seeded 26th at the tournament in the Spanish capital, beat Mirra Andreeva in the final to hoist the trophy.
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Kostyuk became the first player born in 2002 to win a title at WTA 1000 level, and is the lowest-ranked Madrid Open champion since the tournament’s inception in 2009.
She had never found much joy in Madrid in years gone by, which she touched on after her victory.
Marta Kostyuk reacts after winning the Madrid Open title.
Asked what was different this year in her post-tournament press conference, Kostyuk replied: “I don’t know.
“When Sandra told me today, she was like, you know, when we came here our first time being at this tournament was two years ago, and I lost first round.
“And she was like, I don’t understand why she doesn’t like to play here, the conditions suit her game really well. And I never saw it that way.
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“Then last year I got injured before Stuttgart and I didn’t manage to defend my final. I came here a bit earlier, still a bit injured from my ab.
“I think being a little bit injured just gave me a different perspective on the game here or, you know, what I should do here. And it was working out really well.
“I had unbelievable quarterfinal match last year. And, you know, this year it was even better. Yeah, I think I don’t know exactly answer to that, for sure.”
Marta Kostyuk says she is not focused on ranking points
Kostyuk moved from world number 23 to 15 with the win, but the ranking change did not seem to bother her.
She said: “I don’t focus on the rankings. My goal, not even my goal, but I was, I would be very happy if I finished clay court season in top 20.
“I didn’t think about, you know, a specific number or anything. I just wanted to be as consistent as possible. I didn’t think about it.
“I still don’t think about the ranking, because ranking is just a consequence of what you do on the court. Yeah, nothing changes.
“Probably I’ll get a bit better draws, but, you know, at the end, all the players are super solid and really good. So I don’t focus on that. As I said, I just want to keep working and enjoying.”
The title in Madrid was the second of Kostyuk’s career so far.
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