Heartbreaking. A lower back injury forced world No.126 Margarita Gasparyan to retire from the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy final and hand the title to eighth seed Daria Kasatkina, who has become the first Russian champion at the tournament and the first WTA player to clinch two titles in 2021.
The 26-year-old Gasparyan took a medical timeout at 1-4 in the first set and even though the wildcard managed to finish the set, she called it quits early in the second set as Kasatkina led 6-3 2-1. Despite this devastating end to a spectacular week, Gasparyan can look forward to a return to the Top 100.