Martinez Sanchez wins in Rome

Unseeded Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez won the Italian Open today with a straight sets victory over Jelena Jankovic in Rome.

The left-handed Spaniard won 7-6 (7/5) 7-5 in two-and-a-half hours to win only the third singles title of her career and make sure her earlier defeats of Ana Ivanovic and Caroline Wozniacki were not in vain.

Martinez Sanchez led almost throughout the final, and despite a few nervous moments in either set, always seemed to have the better of her opponent – who was looking for her third Rome title and 13th on the circuit.

However, defeats of Serena and Venus Williams in the space of less than 24 hours had appeared to take their toll and Jankovic had no response to her opponent’s mix of serve-and-volley and outrageous sliced drop shots.

Martinez Sanchez became the first Spaniard to win the women’s title since Conchita Martinez won the last of her four consecutive titles in 1996 – and could find herself in the top 20 of the singles rankings on Monday.