Kvitova outlasts Li for maiden title of season

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.” The momentum shifts were fast and frequent in the opener, with the 22-year-old Czech and her Chinese opponent, who won Roland Garros last season, exchanging the lead back and forth. Kvitova finally took the early lead on a fifth set point in a monster final game. From:gulftoday