Defending champion off the mark at WTA Finals

World number nine Elina Svitolina has made a winning start to the WTA Finals by beating Karolina Pliskova in Shenzhen. The duo earned early breaks before embarking on a marathon 18-minute tie break to decide the first set on the second day of the event in China. Svitolina won that tie break and took that momentum into the second set, breaking in the seventh game, to earn a 7-6(14-12) 6-4 victory. “That was probably one of the longest tie-breaks I have played,” Svitolina said. “I was just trying to be ready for her big serves today. I tried to move quickly and react quickly. The slightly slower surface gave me a bit more time.” The Ukrainian, who is yet to triumph at a Grand Slam event, won the title last season in Singapore and admits she is still in disbelief over that achievement. She added: “It’s a big privilege to return to this event. I still can’t believe I won it last year.” Svitolina is in the Purple Group and will take on Canada’s Bianca Andreescu next on Wednesday before facing Simona Halep.