Madison Brengle wins second Dow Tennis Classic title over Robin Anderson to reign in Midland

By: Thomas Cluck

It’s been a week of good vibes and comfort being back home indoors in Midland once again for the first time in 18 months at the Dow Tennis Classic and those feelings of happiness helped 2018 winner and top seed Madison Brengle win her second title here at the Greater Midland Tennis Center in Michigan and reign as the champion once again on Sunday.

The American, ranked number 71 in the world on the WTA Tour, capped off a strong, hard-fought week of tennis with a straightforward 6-2, 6-4 victory over countrywoman Robin Anderson, a former UCLA Bruin who’s been the revelation of the week here with her upset run to a second Midland final, to lift that trophy once again today.

“I’m super excited. It’s the end of the year. So like, everybody’s a bit tired and it’s been a tough year so to end on a high note it feels really great,” said Brengle.

It was a compelling all-American championship match for the Midwestern crowd to enjoy on day seven, the third such all-US final in four years here, but it was the Delaware native Brengle who was just one shot better than her compatriot Anderson seemingly for all 96 minutes of the match that earned the victory and 125 ranking points on the WTA.

“I feel like my movement, especially on indoor courts was really good. I grew up playing on indoor courts in Delaware so it kind of suits my game. It’s fast and flat tennis which I really really like,” she commented.

Anderson was playing in her first WTA Tour-level final today but with her form and giant-killing ability this week all the signs point towards it being the first of many for the 28 year-old from New Jersey.

“You can tell she’s also really good on indoor courts. She’s very quick and she’s got a big first serve. So with those two things and how fast she can play with her forehand, she makes it really tough and she said it’s her first WTA final but I’m sure she’s gonna play quite a few,” Brengle assessed.

The comfortable feelings being back in Midland helped propel both Brengle and Anderson to marquee weeks in mid-Michigan with Brengle having hoisted the trophy over former North Carolina Tar Heel and fellow American Jamie Loeb in 2018 while Anderson finished runner-up here once before in 2016 to Great Britain’s Naomi Broady.

“You definitely know that you can do it. You have that confidence on the court. But I mean, every match you play is tough,” explained the 31 year-old. 

“And I feel like I did a good job competing start to finish kind of regardless of whether it was a close match or whether score wise I was going through it easier. Yeah, I feel like I just competed really well start to finish the whole week.”

It’s surely a rewarding and also refreshing end to the 2021 season for both players here in early November, ending their respective years on a high note after toiling away all season long on the WTA Tour with the never-ending travel and the physical and mental fatigue that belies all players on the professional tennis circuit by this point in the year. While it was a tough week of work for both women, going into the always short tennis offseason off the winds of a successful week like this will surely make it worth it for both ladies.

“It’s definitely not easy. But I feel like I went into it with a pretty good attitude and I was able to play pretty freely,” added Brengle. 

“I just tried to enjoy being out on the court for my last tournament this year,” concluded the now two-time champion here in Midland.