How does it feel to taste success after putting in years of hard work? Ask the Greek tennis star, Maria Sakkari, who won her first WTA title in over four years today. The 28-year-old defeated Caroline Dolehide of the United States in the summit clash of the WTA 1000 Guadalajara Open in Mexico to clinch the title. It was a dream run for the second seed Sakkari, who put in a lot of hard work to emerge victorious after years. Following her successful run, Sakkari had an emotional moment on the court.

The World Number 9 highlighted how her team had stayed together with her during difficult times to be where she is now. Having suffered heartbreaking defeats in crucial matches over the past few years, she broke down as reflected on her journey through the lows to her first high in a long time.

Maria Sakkari gets emotional after winning the title

During the presentation ceremony after winning the WTA 1000 title in Mexico, Sakkari thanked her coach, Tom Hill for standing by her despite enduring difficult times. While expressing immense gratitude towards him, the Greek tennis star broke down.

Talking about her prolonged wait to win a WTA title, Sakkari went on to say, “I want to thank my coach Tom who’s been with me the last 5 years. We waited more than 4 years for a 2nd title. We’ve heard many bad things like I’ll never win a title. That I’m a Top 5 player with only 1 title. That was very hard for me to overcome. I’m so happy I did it here this week.”

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In what was a near comfortable win for Sakkari, she defeated her American opponent in straight sets 7-5, 6-3. The 28-year-old needed an hour and 43 minutes to dispatch Dolehide and claim her first WTA title after last winning a title in Rabat in 2019. It comes as a welcome boost to Sakkari’s confidence, who was hinting at her retirement just last month.

When Sakkari hinted at her possible retirement

The former World Number 3 had a disastrous US Open campaign where she lost in the opening round against Rebeka Masarova of Spain. During the post-match interview after her loss, Sakkari talked about her potential retirement from tennis in the coming period.

Opening up about the difficult contemplation, she said, “The previous two defeats definitely played a part. I was very nervous. I don’t know what I’m going to do, I really don’t know. Maybe I should take a break, I’m suffering on the court. But I can’t make a decision now, my mind isn’t clear.”

However, her maiden WTA 1000 title win will ease her nerves and she’ll look to finish the 2023 season on a high, keeping retirement talks aside. Will she be able to carry forth this momentum into 2024? Time will tell, but the community continues to root for her.

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