Belinda Bencic capped a dramatic week at the Toray Pan Pacific Open in dominant fashion on Sunday afternoon, storming past Linda Noskova in straight sets in the final, 6-2, 6-3.
The triumph comes a decade after she was a runner-up at the WTA 500 event, and by nearly the same scoreline—she fell to Agnieszka Radwanska in the 2015 final, 6-2, 6-2.
It's the milestone 10th WTA title of her career, and her second since returning to the tour as a mom at the end of last year, after she won another WTA 500 title earlier this year in Abu Dhabi.
It's also her second career title in Tokyo, having captured the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, which were held in 2021.
"I feel very welcome to play here in Japan," Bencic told the crowd afterwards. "It's been a very beautiful time for me throughout all my career, and I'm very honored to be a champion listed among all these legends who won this tournament before."
Among the legends who've won the event are Billie Jean King, Margaret Court, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, Maria Sharapova and Naomi Osaka.