Kvitova outlasts Li in Montreal

Former Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova claimed her first title of 2012 as she won a battle of ex-Grand Slam champions, beating China's Li Na 7-5, 2-6, 6-3 at the Montreal Masters on Monday.

Kvitova, the fifth seed, rode a roller coaster in the 62-minute opening set which featured 17 break points between the error-prone pair with a dozen of those saved.

"I hope this is good preparation for the US Open," said Kvitova. "I had some good matches here and hope to continue. But every tournament is different and every player is tough, so we'll see.

"It's great to have a good result in North America before the Open. I'm so glad I was able to play well here."

World No 11 Li has now finished runner-up three times this year. The final was scheduled for Monday night so as not to clash with the closing of the London Olympics on Sunday.

The pair now stand level at two wins each in their series which began in 2011.

Kvitova earned a personal best in North America as she played her first final on the continent after never advancing past a quarterfinal before.

(China Daily 08/15/2012 page23)