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Stuttgart Open: World number one Ashleigh Barty beats Aryna Sabalenka in final

World number one Ashleigh Barty beat Aryna Sabalenka in the final of the Stuttgart Open to clinch her third WTA title of 2021.

Barty took 23 minutes to win the second set and, while she was broken at 3-1 in the third, she was not to be denied.

The title is just her second on clay after winning the 2019 French Open.

Sabalenka, 22, made Barty work in the deciding set despite the Belarusian playing with strapping on her right leg after needing a medical time out after the second set.

Barty's clay-court triumph in Germany follows title wins on the hard courts of the Miami Open and Yarra Valley Classic.