Chinese number one Li Na has won the 2014 Australian Open by beating Slovakia's Dominika Cibulkova 7-6(7-3) 6-0 in the final.
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Na was competing in her third Melbourne final in four years, while this was Cibulkova's first ever appearance in a Grand Slam showpiece.
Perhaps flustered by the occasion, Cibulkova made a nervy start and produced two double faults in the opening game, in which she was broken to 40.
The 24-year-old Slovak then fought back to lead 5-4, forcing Li to serve to stay in the set. Li did just that and went on to break in the following game.
However, more resilience from Cibulkova saw her break back for a second time to earn a tie-break. World number four Li dominated the breaker, though, winning it 7-3 to take the opening set after 70 minutes of play.
Li was simply unstoppable in the second set, which lasted just 27 minutes and saw her win 24 of 36 points, hitting 12 winners and committing just five unforced errors in the process.
With this triumph, Li has now won two Grand Slam singles championships, as well as nine WTA Tour titles.
Robert Summerscales
