Hantuchova retains Thai crown
Third seed prevails after three-hour epic
Last Updated: February 12, 2012 1:44pm
Daniela Hantuchova: Clinched fifth WTA Tour title after marathon final
Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova came from a set down to defeat Maria Kirilenko and retain her Pattaya Open title.
The world number 20 eventually prevailed 6-7 (4/7) 6-3 6-3 in over three hours to land her fifth WTA career title and first since winning in Thailand a year ago.
Russian Kirilenko had already spent more than nine hours on court just to get to the final, which was her first on the WTA Tour in nearly 16 months.
The Russian double-faulted to give Hantuchova the crucial break and a 5-3 lead in the deciding set.
And Hantuchova, seeded third at the event, closed out the win with help of two forehand winners down the line.
