Dominika Cibulkova beats Karolina Pliskova to claim Aegon International title

25 June 2016 04:23

Dominika Cibulkova claimed the first grass-court title of her career by triumphing at the Aegon International on Saturday.

The Slovakian heads to Wimbledon on a high after beating Czech Karolina Pliskova 7-5 6-3 in Eastbourne.

Seeded 12th on the English south coast, two places behind her opponent, former Australian Open runner-up Cibulkova impressed in carrying off the silverware.

For Cibulkova, who missed a large chunk of last season due to Achilles surgery, the victory carried on her momentum in a fine season.

Her fourth final of the year brought the 27-year-old a second title of 2016.

Strong winds made the task for both players complicated, as Cibulkova acknowledged.

She said on BBC Two: "This has been my best week on grass. It just happened and I can't believe it. I was playing really well today but the conditions were really hard for me and my opponent.

"It was a great week for me. I love playing here. This is my second time here and I'm going to come here many more years."

Cibulkova starts at Wimbledon, where she is seeded 19th, with a first-round clash against Croatian veteran Mirjana Lucic-Baroni.

The Bratislava resident's record at the All England Club shows a best performance of reaching the quarter-finals in 2011.

Source: PA