By Islam El-Sakka
British tennis player Harriet Dart captured her first WTA title on Sunday at the Guangzhou Open in China, defeating Austrian teenager Lilli Tagger in the final. The victory caps a remarkable second half of the season for the 30-year-old, who entered the tournament ranked 115th in the world and is projected to rise to 83rd on Monday.
Coaching partnership with Marion Bartoli
Dart has worked part-time since the start of the season with former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli, the 2013 title winner who reached a career-high ranking of world number seven. The pair, who live near each other in Dubai, collaborate during training blocks when Dart is not competing on tour. Dart credits Bartoli's belief in her as a turning point, saying the Frenchwoman's confidence has helped her believe more in herself. Bartoli, 42, has coached several WTA players since retiring, including 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko.
Career resurgence and ranking rise
Since Wimbledon, Dart has won 19 of 24 tour-level matches on hard courts, achieving the highest winning percentage of her career. She had previously struggled with a vulnerable second serve and questions about her mentality in pressure moments, but in Guangzhou she answered those doubts with a series of comeback victories. The title lifts her season record to 23 wins from 34 matches on the WTA Tour.
British women's tennis momentum
Dart's breakthrough adds to a strong finish for British women on the Asian hard-court swing. Sonay Kartal reached the final of a WTA 1000 event in Wuhan, Katie Boulter made the semi-finals at a WTA 250 in Osaka, and teenager Hannah Klugman won a W100 Challenger title in Wrexham. Britain's Billie Jean King Cup captain Anne Keothavong praised the group's collective performance, noting increased belief and confidence across the squad.
