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Italy's Cocciaretto gets Australian Open boost with Hobart title / Photo: © AFP
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Italy's Cocciaretto gets Australian Open boost with Hobart title
Italian qualifier Elisabetta Cocciaretto won her second career WTA title Saturday at the Hobart International, upsetting American Iva Jovic in a confidence-booster ahead of the Australian Open.
The world number 80 was runner-up in 2023 and went one better this time with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Jovic, who claimed her maiden title last year at Guadalajara aged just 17.
Cocciaretto, a former world number 29, scored two wins just to make the main draw and picked up steam after escaping fourth seed Ann Li from 6-1, 5-3 down in the second round.
The 24-year-old, whose only previous title was on clay at Lausanne in 2023, did not lose more than four games in a set for the rest of the tournament.
She was the fourth qualifier to win the Hobart crown after Mona Barthel (2012), Garbine Muguruza (2014) and Lauren Davis (2023).
Cocciaretto will meet Austria's Julia Grabher to get her Australian Open campaign underway while Jovic faces fellow American Katie Volynets.
F. Burkhard--BTZ
