Top seed Maria Kirilenko triumphed in the Hansol Korea Open final battling back to beat Australian Samantha Stosur 2-6 6-1 6-4.

Stosur served eight aces while dominating the first set, but then quickly lost 10 of the next 11 games to surrender the second set and fall 4-0 down in the decider. The Australian then started recovering, and seemed to be close to evening things up, but it didn’t eventually happen and the elegant Muscovite won her third title of the 2008 season (after Estoril and Barcelona).

Wolrd No.33 Kirilenko, the finalist last year in Seoul, earned $22,900 with today’s victory. (source: Sky Sports, photo via Yahoo)

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Three seeds fell on the first day of the 2008 US Open: Russians Anna Chakvetadze and Maria Kirilenko, and Shahar Peer of Israel.

Chakvetadze, seeded tenth, suffered her earliest Grand Slam defeat in more than three years falling 1-6 6-2 6-3 to compatriot Ekaterina Makarova, ranked 56th in the world. Chakvetadze took the opening set in 25 minutes and looked to be on a good way to victory, but in the end she became a first-round loser.

No.22 seed Kirilenko lost to Tamira Paszek of Austria 6-3 3-6 6-4 and this year’s result is her worst at the US Open, before she reached second or third round.

Peer, seed No.24, got eliminated by China’s Li Na 2-6 6-0 6-1 despite superb play in the opening set. "In the first set I felt like I was playing against a wall," said Li after her great turnaround. (photos: Getty Images)

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I came across these photos of adidas by Stella McCartney Fall/Winter 2008 collection, and I find it absolutely amazing, just like all her collections. Read more »

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I consider Russia’s Maria Kirilenko the most beautiful female tennis player and this fashion spread on her website is simply stunning. Enjoy these great photos!

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Second seed Maria Kirilenko won the Torneo Barcelona KIA on Sunday with a comfortable 6-0 6-2 victory over Spanish wild card Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez in the final.

It is Kirilenko's second Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles title of the year and the fourth of her career. This season the Russian also won at Estoril, Portugal, in April.

The 21-year-old Kirilenko, who will climb to 19th in the world rankings on Monday, dominated in the first set and closed it out in 39 minutes. Martinez Sanchez, who was playing her first WTA final, produced resistance only during Kirilenko's second service game.

Kirilenko collected $22,900 with her win. (via CBS Sports, photo via Sony Ericsson WTA Tour)

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