Serena Williams won her second career WTA Championships title Sunday with a commanding 6-2, 7-6 (7/4) victory over sister Venus, a triumph which earned her a cool 1.55 million dollars. Serena, who will finish the season as world No. 1, also won the trophy in 2001, making her just the second player after Justine Henin in 2007 to capture two Grand Slam titles as well as the WTA Championship in the same year. Serena won all five matches at this event, including a group stage win over defending champion Venus, and such was her dominance in Sunday's final that she gave up just seven points on serve. The 85-minute romp was her 13th victory in 23 meetings with her sister, a family rivalry stretching back to 1998. “It feels fantastic. I definitely wasn't expecting to win when I came here because I hadn't been practicing very well,” said Serena. Victory – the 35th title of her career – added to Serena's capture of the Australian Open and Wimbledon titles in 2009. Venus, who also lost her Wimbledon title to Serena this year, said she did all she could in the final. “I gave 100 percent. Serena played a great match,” said Venus. Melzer takes Vienna title Jurgen Melzer defeated top-seeded Marin Cilic 6-4, 6-3 to win the Bank Austria Tennis Trophy Sunday. It was the Austrian's second ATP title after winning in Bucharest in 2006. He is now 2-6 in finals. Cilic, who is now 2-2 in finals this season, entered the tournament on a wild card after US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro withdrew with a wrist injury. Ljubicic ends title drought Croatian Ivan Ljubicic captured his first ATP title in two years when he dismissed France's Michael Llodra 7-5, 6-3 in the final of the Lyon Grand Prix Sunday. World number 29 Ljubicic, who was the only non-Frenchman in the quarterfinals, had won his last title at the Den Bosch Open in 2007. Ljubicic, 30, said the title would make a perfect gift for his son's first birthday. “It's a special place for me. I won my first title here in 2001 and here is my first title as a father,” he said. Stakhovsky champion Ukraine's qualifier Sergiy Stakhovsky battled from a set down to win the 750,000-dollar St. Petersburg ATP event, beating Argentine's Horacio Zeballos in the final Sunday. The 23-year-old Stakhovsky won 2-6, 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (9-7) in two hours 19 minutes in his first ever head-to-head meeting with eighth seed Zeballos, ranked 54th in the world.
