VENUS WILLIAMS CLINCHED her first WTA title in more than two years with a comfortable win over Monica Niculescu at the Luxembourg Open.
The American, a seven-time grand slam singles champion, thrashed Niculescu 6-2 6-3 at the WTA International tournament on hard-courts on Sunday.
Having endured two seasons marred by injuries and illness, the win marked Williams’ first WTA title since winning in Mexico in February 2010.
The 32-year-old Williams, ranked 41 in the world, has now won 44 WTA titles.
Niculescu finished as runner-up at the tournament for the second straight year, having fallen to Victoria Azarenka in the decider 12 months ago.
The Romanian committed too many errors to trouble Williams, who converted four of seven break points to win in one hour and 23 minutes.
But Williams had to make do without her usually reliable serve, which was lacking its usual power.
It forced Williams into long points against defensive journeywoman Niculescu, who was behind 3-0 in the first set after wasting several break points.
A Niculescu double-fault handed Williams the first set and the five-time Wimbledon champion took a break early in the second.
Niculescu responded with a break of her own but Williams was untroubled as she ended her long wait for a title.
