Daria Kasatkina beat good friend Mirra Andreeva to win the Ningbo Open title in China.
Russian fifth seed Kasatkina beat her teenage compatriot 6-0 4-6 6-4 in a tough encounter.
Andreeva was in tears after the match, squandering a 3-0 lead in the final set.
But she was quickly comforted by Kasatkina before she could make a joke. “I really tried not to cry because I knew the pictures were going to be ugly, but I couldn’t help it. I’m sorry, guys.”
World number 11 Kasatkina appeared to be cruising after making just two errors in a dominant opening set.
Andreeva, 17, staged an impressive comeback and took control after winning the first three games of the deciding set.
But Kasatkina capitalized on a series of unforced errors to win her fifth straight game and emerge victorious.
Andreeva, who advanced to the semifinals of this year’s French Open and won a silver medal in doubles at the Paris Olympics, was aiming for her second singles title.
Kasatkina, meanwhile, has lost four singles finals this year. Andreeva jokingly celebrated that she “finally finished episode one.”
“Thank you for reminding me that we lost too many finals this year,” Kasatkina said after the match.
He added, “Congratulations on the final. I saw you crying and I think you’ll make a lot of it. I hope you can share more in the future.”
This is Kasatkina’s second title of the year, following her win at Eastbourne in June and her eighth career singles win.
At the Nordic Open in Stockholm, America’s Tommy Paul won his third men’s singles title of the season and his second in Sweden. He then defeated Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-3 to win the 2021 title.
In men’s doubles, Britain’s Henry Patten won his fourth title of the season in his first year with new partner Harri Heliovaara of Finland.
The top seeds beat Czech pair Petr Nouza and Patrik Rikl 7-5 6-3 in Sunday’s final.
Sonay Kartal emerged victorious in the all-British final at the W100 ITF event in Shrewsbury after opponent Heather Watson retired injured, trailing 7-5 4-1.
Kartal, 22, is expected to re-enter the world’s top 100 when the latest WTA rankings are confirmed on Monday, with a career-high ranking of 91st.
She has won 29 of her last 32 singles matches. First WTA title of her career In Tunisia in September.
