Caroline Wozniacki is the new Australian Open champion
What's the story
The long wait has finally ended for Caroline Wozniacki as she lifted the Australian Open trophy, her first Grand Slam title. In an intensely competitive match that kept the viewers on the edge till the last point, Wozniacki beat Simona Halep 7-6, 3-6, 6-4, a victory that also saw Caroline reclaim the world number 1 ranking from the latter. Here are the details.
Ending the GS drought
After 43 Grand Slam appearances and three finals
This is Caroline Wozniacki's maiden title that came to her in her 43rd Grand Slam appearance and a third attempt at a major final. She had reached the US Open finals in 2009 and 2014, eventually losing them to Kim Clijsters and Serena Williams respectively. Interestingly, she previously had spent 67 weeks as the world number 1 player without winning any Grand Slams.
Surviving the scare
Almost ousted in early rounds
On her way to winning the title, Wozniacki was almost ousted in second round of Australian open. With her resilience, she escaped the threat posed by un-seeded Jana Fett, saved two match points and came back from 5-1 down in the third set to win 3-6, 6-2, 7-5. Like Wozniacki, her final opponent Halep also saved match points (5) on the road to final.
Data
Prize money won
While the Women's singles champion and the first Danish Grand Slam winner Wozniacki will take home a prize money worth $4 million, Simona Halep the runner-up collected $2 million as prize money.