Top seed Shnaider triumphs in Budapest to capture third title of year

No.1 seed Diana Shnaider continued her charge up the rankings by winning the Hungarian Grand Prix title on Sunday, and she completed a rare all-surface achievement in the process.

Budapest 2024: Scores | Draws | Order of Play

Shnaider defeated 134th-ranked Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-4, 6-4 to win the clay-court crown in Budapest. Shnaider, currently ranked a career-high No.28, needed 95 minutes to defeat Sasnovich in straight sets for the second time this year.

"It was a great match," Shnaider said after winning her third title of the year. "I enjoyed playing that and there was some exciting rallies, so I hope people also enjoyed watching that. I think it's always nice that it's not easy and we're pushing each other to the limits."

All-surface mastery: Shnaider won her first career title on the hard courts of Hua Hin this February, and then won her second title on the grass of Bad Homburg just before Wimbledon.

With her Budapest triumph on the clay, Shnaider has won WTA singles titles on all three surfaces this year. She is the first woman to win titles on every surface in the same year since Caroline Garcia in 2022.

"All of the titles are like the first one," Shnaider said. "I feel like I'm always gonna be enjoying it like the first one."

At age 20, Shnaider is the youngest player to complete that surface title sweep in a single year since a 19-year-old Caroline Wozniacki did the same in 2009. 

Shnaider is also just the third left-handed player this century to win titles on every surface in the same year. Angelique Kerber pulled off the feat in 2015, and Petra Kvitova did it twice, in 2011 and 2018.

The accomplishment underlines how quickly Shnaider has risen up the rankings. Shnaider was ranked No.110 just 12 months ago, but she is now on the verge of a projected Top 25 debut following her Budapest heroics.

"I'm very happy that I [won] it," Shnaider said. "It's an unbelievable season going so far for me."

Tale of the match: In the first set of Sunday’s final, Shnaider’s down-the-line winners outpaced Sasnovich’s relatively frequent forays into the forecourt, and Sasnovich was unable to hold serve until 5-2. At 5-4, the top seed used her powerful forehand to break for the one-set lead.

Shnaider let a 2-0 second-set lead disappear as Sasnovich's serving and ground game improved down the stretch. Sasnovich moved ahead by a break at 4-3, but that would be the last time the unseeded player would win a game.

No.1 seed Shnaider powered back in front to 5-4, where a fiery forehand service return lined up her first championship point. There, Sasnovich sent a backhand wide, and Shnaider wrapped up her all-surface sweep with her first career clay-court title.

Shnaider converted seven of her nine break points on the day, denying Sasnovich a long-awaited first WTA singles title. Former Top 30 player Sasnovich reached her first final in 2015 and has five runner-up finishes to her name.

Doubles defense: The Hungarian fans saw a home player win the doubles title on Saturday. Budapest-born Fanny Stollar teamed with Poland's Katarzyna Piter to defend their title, notching a 6-3, 3-6, [10-3] win over Anna Danilina and Irina Khromacheva in the doubles final.

Reigning champions Piter and Stollar took 74 minutes to win this year's final. The pair repeated their path from last year, winning their first three matches in straight sets before clinching the title with a match-tiebreak.

Stollar has won all four of her WTA doubles titles in her hometown and nation's capital. She also won in Budapest in 2018 with Georgina García Pérez, and in 2021 with Mihaela Buzarnescu.

As for Piter, this is her third career WTA doubles title. She also won 2013 Palermo with Kristina Mladenovic.