Caroline Wozniacki captured her first career Grand Slam title on Saturday, defeating No. 1 Simona Halep to win the 2018 Australian Open.
Wozniacki, in her 43rd Grand Slam appearance, battled Halep for three sets in a thrilling match two hours and 50 minutes, before winning win 7-6(2), 3-6, 6-4.
Both women saved match points en route to the championship match, the first time in the Open Era that both finalists did so at a Grand Slam.
With the win, Wozniacki will reclaim the WTA World No. 1 ranking exactly six years since she last held it, a WTA Rankings record for time in between stints at No.1.
Here's how the tennis world reacted to Wozniacki's title.
I got too nervous to watch but woke up to @CaroWozniacki new number one and aussie open champ. So awesome. So happy. Are those tears? Yup they are. 😭 from a year ago to today I'm so proud my friend so proud. Literally can't even sleep now — Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) January 27, 2018
Congratulations @CaroWozniacki - welcome to the Club. — Rod Laver (@rodlaver) January 27, 2018
Ecstatic for @CaroWozniacki! Well deserved! But gutted for @Simona_Halep. Knew this outcome would bring up extreme contrasting emotions w/ 1st major on line for both well liked ladies. @WTA #lifechanging — Tracy Austin (@thetracyaustin) January 27, 2018
Big congrats to @CaroWozniacki for finally capturing her first grand slam title.🏆👏👏👏 #AusOpen — Jonas Bjorkman (@BjorkmanTennis) January 27, 2018
What a final of the @AustralianOpen thank you @Simona_Halep and @CaroWozniacki for this amazing fight. Congratulations to both of you #womentennisrocks — Conchita Martínez (@conchitamartinz) January 27, 2018
World #1 ✅
Grand Slam Champ ✅ @CaroWozniacki YOU earned it!!! 🏆 #AusOpen — Bethanie MattekSands (@BMATTEK) January 27, 2018
What an #ausopen final 👏🏽 two absolutely incredible athletes and fighters. Im so emosh right now for both of them 😢 — Heather Watson (@HeatherWatson92) January 27, 2018
What a great final 👌 wow!!! Congrats @CaroWozniacki 🏆 well worth the wait to get your 1st grand slam title, so well deserved. And hats off to @Simona_Halep what a fantastic tournament 🎾 #ausopen #champs #girlpower — caseydellacqua (@caseydellacqua) January 27, 2018
I’m so incredibly proud to be a part of women’s tennis in this day and age. What a tournament for both @CaroWozniacki and @Simona_Halep 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 @WTA @AustralianOpen — Johanna Konta (@JoKonta91) January 27, 2018
Congratulations to both @CaroWozniacki and @Simona_Halep for gutsy performances tonight and welcome to the Major Winner Club,Caro:), and #1 again!!! https://t.co/LiGWkHNgzA — Martina Navratilova (@Martina) January 27, 2018
How good was that match?! Women’s tennis keeping everyone on the edge of their seat! Congratulations to both @CaroWozniacki and @Simona_Halep - Thank you for representing us in such a remarkable way on and off the court! What a tournament.💞🎾@AustralianOpen @WTA — Shelby Rogers (@Shelby_Rogers_) January 27, 2018
Congratulations @CaroWozniacki - looking forward to repeat your success tomorrow! Better go as I need to make the sleepy faces so I'm ready. Goodbye and well done. GOAT xx — Not Roger Federer (@PseudoFed) January 27, 2018
A match for the ages. Two warriors both worthy of the win. An absolute joy to present the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup to @AustralianOpen women’s singles champion, @CaroWozniacki. So proud of women’s tennis on this day and everyday. pic.twitter.com/39WmlGJqbY — Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) January 27, 2018
So happy for @CaroWozniacki for winning the @AustralianOpen. You deserve it! Congrats to @Simona_Halep on a great run too. You were both so gracious in victory and defeat. It was an incredible final! I’m a huge fan of both of you 👏 — Kevin Anderson (@KAndersonATP) January 27, 2018
Couldn’t be happier for @CaroWozniacki !! Enjoy your moment !!! #HOF I want that moment for @Simona_Halep . It’s coming ...... — andyroddick (@andyroddick) January 27, 2018
Congrats to @CaroWozniacki for winning the @AustralianOpen 👏 and returning to Number 1. Also a big congrats to @Simona_Halep for an amazing tournament. 2 winner in my eyes 👀 #AusOpen — Jule Goerges✌️🇩🇪 (@juliagoerges) January 27, 2018
Was flying when @AustralianOpen final finished.Big congrats to both girls for this amazing effort and of course @CaroWozniacki with her first Grand Slam Title🏆👏 #AusOpen — Elena Vesnina (@EVesnina001) January 27, 2018
Saying that life has taken a turn for the better for Caroline Wozniacki in the last couple of months does not really cover it.
First she got engaged to former NBA star David Lee during an off-season holiday in November and now she is, at last, the grand slam champion she always dreamed about.
All the sweeter is that came after a gruelling, high-stakes Australian Open final. It crackled with intensity and was among the best of recent years featuring either men or women, and Melbourne Park has seen some good ones of late.
Caroline Wozniacki kisses the Australian Open trophy which will elevate her to world No 1
Wozniacki held her nerve and kept her physical condition to defeat Simona Halep 7-6, 3-6, 6-4 in two hours and 49 minutes of gripping combat with the result in doubt until she fell to the floor in sobbing delight at the end.
It completed a remarkable turnaround from a week last Wednesday, when she had trailed little-known Croatian Jana Fett 5-1 in a deciding set and had to fend off two match points.
Now she was tackling one of the most loaded championship matches ever in women's tennis: the world No 1 spot at stake, a winner's purse of £2.3million and, most importantly, the authenticity of being a true champion.
Wozniacki returns to No 1 exactly six years after relinquishing the position, a record gap in women's tennis.
For both players it offered an escape route from the status of being a Slam-less world No 1. Halep has to continue living with that while Wozniacki, so often the nearly woman, is free.
'I'm just proud I will never hear "you were No 1 but never won a grand slam again",' said the Dane, who less than 18 months ago had seen her ranking fall to No 74 after various ailments. After two lost major finals it looked like she might be the perennial bridesmaid.
Wozniacki returns to the top of the WTA rankings exactly six years after relinquishing it
'All I could tell myself was, "You know what, you've given it everything you have. If it's going to happen, it's going to happen".
'I think you always, at certain points, especially when you start having injuries and stuff, you start maybe doubting if you're ever going to be 100 percent healthy for longer periods of time.
'But I think for a year and a half, I've proved that I can beat anyone out there on court. But when you're in the finals, I'm not going to lie, I was really nervous before going out there.'
She succeeds her close friend Serena Williams as Australian champion and the American was quick to tweet her congratulations. She was apparently too nervous to watch: 'So happy. Are those tears? Yup they are. From a year ago to today I'm so proud my friend so proud,' she said.
It was Williams who invited her on a girls holiday to Miami in 2014 after Rory McIlroy broke off their engagement. Right now there may be a sense of happy ever after for both women.
Wozniacki required a medical time out when she was a break down in the final set of the match
Later that year Wozniacki decided to run in the New York marathon as a project to focus her mind on something, and ended up recording an impressive time of three hours and 26 minutes (only 37 minutes longer than this final).
She has always had a natural durability as an athlete, and rarely has that been more important than in this match, played in steaming heat in the early evening.
That was a key difference between the pair, especially as Halep has contended with foot and ankle problems over the fortnight.
Not for the first time, medical timeouts called by both players turned out to be of significance. Halep called one at 2-3 in the second set to have her blood pressure taken because she was feeling ill. She came out afterwards and romped home to the second set with renewed purpose as the Dane lost some of her focus.
There then followed a 10-minute break, under WTA heat rules, allowing for the players to physically regroup. The next three games took 34 minutes.
But her endurance as an athlete shone through as she came back to win the tournament
Simone Halep paid tribute to Wozniacki's fitness following an epic three-set contest
It was no surprise there were some brilliant rallies between these two excellent movers, and at 4-3 Wozniacki seemed to be flinching at a break down. She called the trainer on to administer strapping to the knee and then came to win the next three games and the title.
The hiatus came before her opponent's serve, although it should be said the gracious Halep did not have any complaints later.
'She was better, she was fresher,' said the Romanian, who is to undergo a series of MRIs. ' I was really tired. I had so many problems at my feet, pain everywhere. But, you know, I think I did pretty well with all the things that were going on.'
The final points count was 110 to 108, with each player having five breaks of serve. The statistics of the match were almost identical on both sides of the ledger, adding a certain cruelty to the result.
Australian Open Caroline Wozniacki wins Australian Open title after epic battle with Halep World No 2 wins first slam title after 7-6, 3-6, 6-4 victory
Both players battle through injury in three-setter Play Video 1:55 Wozniacki beats Halep to win Australian Open – video highlights
After 43 grand slam appearances, it was finally Caroline Wozniacki’s turn. The 27-year-old’s maiden and elusive major makes her the first Danish player to win a grand slam singles title after prevailing over a fearsome and spirited Simona Halep in three brilliant sets, 7-6 (2), 3-6, 6-4.
The nature of the gruelling affair spoke of the resolve of a deserved winner, even if there was also no deserved loser. After six long years, Wozniacki regains world No 1 status, replacing Halep at the top of the rankings – an incredible turnaround of form for a player who dropped as low as No 74 as recently as August 2016.
Caroline Wozniacki beats Simona Halep to win Australian Open women's title – live! Read more
Wozniacki held back tears as she addressed the crowd. “I dreamed of this moment for so many years,” she said. “To be here today is a dream come true. I never cry, but today is an emotional moment.”
The victor also acknowledged the vanquished and the pain she was experiencing in coming so close to her own maiden slam title. They had previously been a runner-up on two occasions and the new world No 1 said it was easy to empathise with the Romanian. “I knew going into the match one of us was going to be very disappointed and sad afterwards,” she said. “I can only imagine [how she is feeling] ... I know that I didn’t want to think too much about what it would be like to win beforehand, because I knew how much it would hurt to lose.
“I just tried to go in focused and calm – so I’m sure it must be hard for her right now.”
Wozniacki admitted that her medical timeout, taken in the third set when trailing 4-3, had enabled her to refocus on her gameplan, and take a more aggressive game to the Romanian. “She takes the ball very early, I needed to take the pressure to her … I knew I had to step in and hit more freely. I knew if I didn’t I was out.”
Both players struggled with conditions on another humid and hot day, with a 10-minute enforced timeout at the end of the second set appearing to work to Wozniacki’s advantage after Halep had rallied to force the deciding set. “It was very hot and we were very tired,” Wozniacki said. “But we fought our hardest and I’m very proud to be here with the trophy.”
Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) I got too nervous to watch but woke up to @CaroWozniacki new number one and aussie open champ. So awesome. So happy. Are those tears? Yup they are. 😭 from a year ago to today I'm so proud my friend so proud. Literally can't even sleep now
The Dane had almost been eliminated in the second round, overturning a 5-1 deficit in the final set and saving two match points against the Croat Jana Fett. After that match, Wozniacki was quoted as saying she had nothing to lose and in the final she played as such, despite competing for the biggest prize of her life and one that had eluded her for so long. There were times in her career when she wondered whether she had the capacity to reach peak form again and clinch her first slam.
“At certain points when you have injuries you start doubting if you’re ever going to be 100% healthy for long periods of time but last year I’ve proved I can beat anyone on court.
“I’m just happy I won the title and it’s really special to start off the year like this.
“When you’re in the finals – I’m not going to lie – I was really nervous, but once I settled and I had the warm-up, I thought, I have everything to win and whatever happens, happens, but I’m going to go out fighting. If it’s not enough it is what it is but I’m going to be proud of my effort. World No 1 and new grand slam champion sounds pretty good.”
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Halep, meanwhile, arrived on the greatest stage of all having saved five match points in two separate matches when the final sets went to 15-13 and 9-7 respectively. After the final, Halep admitted she had struggled for energy, having endured severe pain after rolling her ankle in the first round. The injury will require an MRI scan and restricted her to 10-15 minutes of practice a day. Under the circumstances, Halep said she could be proud of her performance.
“Physically it was very tough. But mentally I was ready and I feel I can face any challenge, I can play against anyone, I can win against anyone. But Caroline was better than me.
“For sure I will fight, as I have for many years and hopefully I will face another challenge like today. The people watching back home said I couldn’t make it the third time, maybe the fourth time will be good luck. Hopefully next year I will see you in the same position.”
Wozniacki’s victory continues a hot vein of form for the new champion, who has reached the title match in her past three tournaments, including October’s breakthrough victory at the WTA Finals against Venus Williams, then the biggest victory of her career.
Now, Wozniacki will deal with the inevitable attention of being a first-time grand slam winner, although it will undoubtedly be preferable to the scrutiny of another major final loss.
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI has reached her third Grand Slam final as she aims to lift her first major trophy at the Australian Open.
The 27-year-old Dane will face world no 1 Simona Halep with the winner also securing the top spot in the rankings.
Instagram @dlee042
Who is her fiance?
WOZNIACKI is currently engaged to ex-NBA player David Lee.
She announced on her social media account that they were dating on Valentine's Day in 2017.
The couple got engaged in November whilst on holiday in Bora Bora.
Twitter, @CaroWozniacki Caroline Wozniacki announced her engagement to David Lee on social media
Why is David Lee famous?
DAVID Lee, who has been supporting her at the Australian Open, is a former NBA All-star and winner of the NBA Championship.
Lee won the NBA Championship in his final season with Gold State Warriors in 2015 and announced his retirement shortly after the pair got engaged.
Caroline Wozniacki overjoyed at Aussie Open win as Simona Halep rues losing another slam final
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Was she was engaged to Rory McIlroy?
THE couple were together between 2011 and 2014 after bonding over their sporting lifestyles.
The pair were regularly seen together with Wozniacki acting as his caddie in a par-three competition on the eve of the Masters in 2013
McIlroy announced on New Year's Eve the same year that the pair had got engaged.
AP:Associated Press Rory McIlroy called off his engagement to Caroline Wozniacki, saying he wasn't ready
How did their relationship end?
MCILROY ended the relationship in 2014, just days after their wedding invitations had been sent out with rumours that she had become a "bridezilla."
The break-up took place over the phone - something which Wozniacki has since admitted she found hard.
In his statement he said, "The wedding invitations made me realise that I wasn't ready for all that marriage entails. I wish Caroline all the happiness she deserves and thank her for the great times we've had.”
