Cibulkova Rallies Past Radwanska to Capture Bank of the West Classic Title

Back in January, Agnieszka Radwanska routed Dominika Cibulkova 6-0, 6-0 to capture the Apia International Sydney singles title and continue her dominance in the all-time series. Sunday’s outcome turned out to be much different. Rallying from an early deficit and overcoming numerous unforced errors throughout the match, Cibulkova notched a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory on Sunday afternoon to claim the 2013 Bank of the West Classic singles crown. Cibulkova, making her sixth straight appearance at the event, secured her third career singles championship and first since winning last year at Carlsbad.

The victory was especially satisfying for Cibulkova, who entered the match 0-4 lifetime against Radwanska, with three of those losses coming in straight sets.

Early on, it looked as if Radwanska would extend her stranglehold, reeling off three games in a row to build a 4-2 lead in the first set. After Cibulkova held serve to make it 4-3, Radwanska produced a hold of her own during a lengthy fifth game and then clinched the set on a service break. After both players traded games to begin the second set, Cibulkova made her move by winning three consecutive games for a 5-3 advantage. Radwanska then held serve and trimmed the lead to 5-4 but Cibulkova answered with a hold and booked the set 6-4.

Radwanska owned leads of 3-1 and 4-2 in the deciding frame before Cibulkova staged her final rally. Mixing in crafty drop shots and powerful backhands, Cibulkova won the next four games, becoming the first Bank of the West Classic champion since Kim Clijsters (2003) to capture the hardware after losing the first set.

The serving of both players proved to be a factor in the match, as Cibulkova made up for eight double faults by routinely capitalizing on Radwanska’s second serves.

Sunday’s match lasted two hours and 30 minutes, with Cibulkova becoming the first Slovakian player to win at Stanford. Cibulkova is projected to rise to 21st in the WTA rankings while Radwanska, who was seeking her 13th career singles title and third in 2013, will likely remain at number four.