Belinda Bencic secured her second WTA title since becoming a mother, defeating Linda Noskova 6-2, 6-3 in the Pan Pacific Open final.
The 28-year-old Swiss star, now ranked 13th in the world, celebrated her 10th career WTA trophy in Tokyo, a decade after losing the final of the same event.
This follows her first post-maternity win in Abu Dhabi, which came less than four months after her return to the tour.
Bencic’s comeback has been remarkable: her ranking had dropped to 1,213 during her time off, and she has since climbed back into the world’s top 15, which included a semi-final run at Wimbledon this year.
“I feel like Tokyo and Japan is a happy place in my career,” said the former Olympic gold medallist, who described the victory as a confirmation of her ability to “even beat my best ranking from before.”
