The No.6-seeded Dane moved past fifth seed Venus Williams of the United States, 6-4, 6-4, to claim the title at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global on Sunday. Wozniacki wins the WTA Finals for the first time, besting her runner-up finish in 2010.

Wozniacki had to survive a stirring comeback from Williams in the second set. "I’m still shaking," Wozniacki said in her on-court interview after the match. "I was up 5-0, everything was going well, and all of a sudden, Venus just starts upping her game. She went for her shots, she started serving to my body, and I’m just so happy that I managed to win in the end."

Not only did Wozniacki win the WTA Finals for the first time, but she also beat Williams for the first time in her career, after seven previous losses. "Eight is my lucky number!" the Dane enthused. "I was hoping that if I’m going to beat her, at least once in my career, it has to be today.  I just went out there and I just did my best."

Wozniacki played her exceptional mix of offense and defense to the hilt, hitting 19 winners to only eight unforced errors. Four of those winners were aces, extending her strong serving statistics she exhibited throughout the tournament.

Williams had a solid match as well, with 31 winners and a first serve percentage of 70 percent, but was unable to close out pivotal service games when she needed to at the end of both sets, and was broken two more times than Wozniacki, which was the difference.

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The 37-year-old exits the game following a trophy-laden career that has spanned three decades, 209 weeks as the singles WTA World No.1, 70 weeks as the doubles WTA World No.1 (and counting) and an induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2013. 

“Tennis will always be part of my life,” said Hingis. "I've had an amazing career that I will cherish forever, and I'm excited for the challenges ahead of me. Thank you to everyone who supported me throughout all of the years."

Hingis turned professional in 1994 and clinched her first WTA singles title in 1996 at Filderstadt. She went on to collect a total of 548 singles match wins, while her haul of 43 career singles titles is the 12th-most in WTA history. The Swiss star is also one of only six players to hold the WTA World No.1 ranking in singles and doubles at the same time.

Following two previous retirements, in 2003 and 2007, Hingis returned to professional tennis in 2013, and enjoyed phenomenal success in doubles, lifting 28 titles following her comeback. In a further testament to her extraordinary career, Hingis has announced her retirement while currently co-ranked World No.1 in doubles with Chinese Taipei’s Chan Yung-Jan, whom she has won nine titles with this year. 

Away from the court, Hingis has been recognized with numerous awards and accolades surrounding her accomplished career, including being named the 1997 BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year, named in the 2000 Forbes magazine Power 100, becoming the first female athlete to be on the cover of famed magazine GQ in 1998, and landed the 2000 Jerry Diamond WTA Aces Award which celebrates off court participation.

Hingis played her last professional tournament at the 2017 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, reaching the semifinals with Co-World No.1 Chan Yung-Jan.

Information from WTA