Djoko, Kuznetsova reign in China

BEIJING – Novak Djokovic won the China Open title with a 6-2, 7-6 (4) victory Sunday over Croatia’s Marin Cilic, while Russia’s Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-2, 6-4 to win the women’s trophy.

The second-seeded Serbian broke Cilic’s serve in the sixth game and again in the eighth to take the first set following a 90-minute rain delay.

The second set was a far more mixed affair, with each breaking the other’s serve three times to force the tiebreaker. That too was close but Cilic struggled to keep up, and his return at 6-4 went wide, handing Djokovic the win.

“My patience and the choice of certain shots and a little more experience than he has decided the winner today,” said Djokovic, who has won all four encounters between the two, all of them on hard courts.

“Whenever I needed to step it up and play some big shots that would decide the match, I did,” Djokovic said.

The third-ranked Djokovic’s path to the title was eased by Cilic’s upset victory over top-seeded Rafael Nadal in Saturday’s semifinal. The rain delay also appeared to have been a factor, allowing Djokovic time to regroup.

“I certainly played much better after the rain delay. I kind of got my nerves together and thought of the tactics and the plan that I should play in the continuation of the match,” he said.

The sixth-seeded Kuznetsova needed just one hour, 20 minutes to complete the straight-sets victory, racking up six aces along the way. The win is her second at Beijing in the last six years, a span during which she has also been runner-up twice.

“I guess I just like to play here. I have some different luck here and definitely like the atmosphere. The support is great,” Kuznetsova said.

Kuznetsova has already qualified for the season-ending WTA Tour Championship in Doha at the end of the month, and said she will spend some time in Moscow practicing before arriving in the Persian Gulf a week early to acquaint herself with the conditions.         (AP)