A strong feature of the Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions is that it showcases some of the most promising young players that are emerging onto the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, and Anastasija Sevastova has established herself on that list of rising talent by defeating Arantxa Parra Santonja 6-2 7-5 in the rain-affected final of the Estoril Open.

Before this year, the 20-year old from Latvia had won only six of 16 matches on the WTA Tour. But this year she has been on fire, qualifying for Dubai, reaching the semi-finals of Monterrey and the third round at Indian Wells. Now, to win in Estoril, she had to overcome top seed Agnes Szavay and seventh seed Peng Shuai. She is the first player from Latvia to win a singles title on the Tour since Larisa Neiland won in Schenectady, New York in 1993, and in fact no Latvian player has even reached a final since Neiland did so in Schenectady in 1994.

"I'm very happy and excited to win my first Sony Ericsson WTA Tour title. I've played pretty well in my last two matches so I think I deserve it," Sevastova said. "It was tough for both of us because we warmed up for 10 minutes after the rain then had to step on court to play a final. I adapted faster and although she worked her way into the match in the second set, I fought to the end."

The International Series now takes a one-week break before moving on France and Strasbourg as the players make their final preparations for the French Open. Every player competing at an International Series event is bidding to earn one of the prestigeous places up for grabs at the Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions. Only the top eight-ranked players to have won a singles title on the International Series and who are not playing at the WTA Championships in Doha will be eligible to compete in the Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions, which takes place at the Bali International Convention Centre, The Westin Resort, Nusa Dua from 4th to 7th November.