JOIN USTop seed Elina Svitolina became the third woman to defend the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships title on Saturday, defeating Russia's Daria Kasatkina 6-4, 6-0 in the final.
World number four Svitolina, who had won both her previous meetings against Kasatkina, dominated the early phase and went on to record a break of serve in the fifth game.
Kasatkina, ranked 24 in the world, saved three set points but was inconsistent with her groundstrokes as Svitolina wrapped up the opening set in the 10th game.
The 23-year-old Ukrainian made the most of the momentum and produced a spotless display in the second set, recording three more breaks of serve and 18 winners to claim the victory in an hour and 10 minutes.
The victory puts Svitolina in the company of Justine Henin and Venus Willliams as the third women's player to win successive Dubai titles.
"It's amazing... coming back and playing as defending champion," Svitolina said.
"I was just trying to hit the ball in the court and was happy with how I handled the pressure throughout the week.
"Congrats to Daria for her performance. We will definitely see her winning more this year."
It was an evening to forget for the 20-year-old Kasatkina, who committed 34 unforced errors, but her victories over world number three Garbine Muguruza and Johanna Konta this week reflected her remarkable progress on the WTA Tour this season.
Shapovalov shines
Canadian teenager Denis Shapovalov beat Taylor Fritz 7-5, 6-4 on Friday, but had to wait to find out who he'll face in the semifinals of the ATP Delray Beach Open.
Shapovalov, ranked 46th in the world, is vying to become the first 18-year-old since Japan's Kei Nishikori at Delray Beach in 2000 to win an ATP Tour title.
He'll face either eighth-seeded Chung Hyeon of South Korea or US wildcard Frances Tiafoe for a place in the final.
But first, Tiafoe and surprise Australian Open semifinalist Chung will have to complete their rain-disrupted contest, which was halted with Tiafoe leading 5-7, 6-4, 5-3.
Organizers waited several hours to try to get the contest completed, finally calling off play for the day after midnight.
The two were scheduled to return on Saturday afternoon to complete their match, which will be followed by the first semifinal between Germany's Peter Gojowczyk and American Steve Johnson, a 6-1, 6-4 winner over Russian Evgeny Donskoy.
Shapovalov and either Tiafoe or Chung will then meet on Saturday night.
Chung is the last seed left in the field, trying to buck an upset trend that claimed top seed and defending champion Jack Sock as well as second-seeded Juan Martin del Potro.
With many up-and-coming players reaching the quarter-finals, Shapovalov said it "almost feels like a junior tournament".
"So many young guys in the quarters and going to be in the semis," he said. "It's good to see a little bit of a new generation of tennis, a new era beginning to happen."
Shapovalov saved both break points he faced against Fritz, wrapping up the victory in one hour and 16 minutes.
"I played really well," he said. "I felt really comfortable from the warm-up. I felt really good with my timing and I returned well when I needed to."
In the other half of the draw, Gojowczyk defeated Reilly Opelka 7-6 (7/5), 6-3.
Gojowczyk's victory followed his three-set triumph over sixth-seeded American John Isner, while Opelka was coming off an upset of Sock.