Janice Tjen captured her first WTA title by defeating Kimberly Birrell 6-4, 6-3 in the Chennai Open final on Sunday. The 23-year-old recorded the biggest victory of her career and became only the third Indonesian to lift a WTA singles trophy in the Open Era.

The only other Indonesian WTA champions are Yayuk Basuki, who won six titles between 1991 and 1994, and Angelique Widjaja, who collected two titles, in Bali in 2001 and in Pattaya City in 2002. Widjaja’s Pattaya City triumph came in November of 2002, the same week as that year’s WTA Finals, when Kim Clijsters defeated Serena Williams for the title. Tjen was five months old at the time.

Tjen had reached her first WTA final in September in Sao Paulo, finishing runner-up to France’s Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah. A few weeks after that run in Brazil, Tjen broke into the Top 100, becoming the first player to crack that elite since Widjaja in 2004.

Her victory in Chennai will bring a significant ranking jump. She’s now projected to rise from No. 82 to just outside the Top 50, a career milestone that reflects rapid progress this season.

© 2025 Robert Prange

Elena Rybakina recovered from a sluggish start to take the Ningbo Open title, coming back from a set down to beat Ekaterina Alexandrova 3-6, 6-0, 6-2. The third-seeded Rybakina trailed 4-1 early in the first set but shifted momentum with a decisive response in the second.

Rybakina used a powerful serve to impose her game and put pressure on the fourth-seeded Alexandrova. Her service performance featured 11 aces, a key element as she moved from a set deficit to control the match and close out the victory in the third set.

The scoreline reflected a clear turnaround: after dropping the opener 6-3, Rybakina produced a bagel in the second set and maintained the upper hand in the decider, limiting opportunities for her opponent and converting the chances she created.

It was the second title of the year for the Kazakhstan player who also won in Strasbourg and the 10th of her career.

The win in Ningbo added another trophy to Rybakina’s season and underlined her capability to recover quickly in a final when faced with early setbacks. Alexandrova, the fourth seed, started strongly but could not sustain the level required once Rybakina elevated her serve and aggression.

Rybakina’s performance combined serve potency and a string of unreturned deliveries that shifted the match after the opening set. The Ningbo title marks another notable result as she continues through the 2025 season.

Leylah Fernandez reached the Japan Open final after a three-set victory over Sorana Cîrstea, prevailing 6-1, 2-6, 6-4. Fernandez recovered from a 3-1 deficit in the deciding set, breaking Cîrstea at 4-4 and then holding serve to close out the match.

The fourth-seeded Canadian advances to her eighth career final. Fernandez is the 2021 U.S. Open runner-up and this season made her only semifinal run at the WTA 500 D.C. Open, where she defeated Anna Kalinskaya in the final for her fourth WTA singles title.

Fernandez will meet 18-year-old qualifier Tereza Valentova in Sunday’s championship match. Valentova, the 2024 Roland Garros junior champion, reached her first WTA final by beating Jaqueline Cristian 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-3 in the other semifinal.

Cristian reached the semifinals after receiving a walkover in her quarterfinal when top-seeded Naomi Osaka pulled out with a left leg injury on Friday.

Fernandez’s win over Cîrstea combined a dominant opening set with a resilient finish, responding after dropping the second set and then mounting the comeback in the third. Valentova’s run as a qualifier and former junior champion sets up a contrast in styles and experience for the final, as an established tour veteran faces an 18-year-old making her first WTA title match appearance.

Sunday’s final will pair Fernandez’s tour experience and previous Grand Slam final appearance with Valentova’s breakthrough week at the Japan Open. The stage is set for a final that will decide the tournament champion and extend both players’ seasons in 2025.