KURUME, Japan — Canada's Rebecca Marino defeated Japanese qualifier Yuki Naito 6-4, 7-6 (0) on Sunday to win the ITF Kurume title on the World Tennis Tour.
The fourth seed from Vancouver needed one hour 23 minutes to complete the victory. Marino dropped only one set in the US$60,000 tournament.
She will move into the top 150 of the WTA Tour world rankings on Monday, her highest position since starting her comeback last year.
Marino has spent most of the last two months playing lower-level ITF tournaments in Japan.
The 28-year-old dropped a 6-4, 6-2 decision to Ukraine's Daria Snigur last month in Kashiwa in her only other final appearance this season.
A former top-40 player, Marino returned to full-time play last season after taking a five-year break from the sport.
The Canadian Press
