Li Na, the world number four seed in women's tennis, captured her first Australian Open title on Saturday night by beating the twentieth-seeded Domonika Cilbukova. The match, played at Rod Laver Arena, ended with a score of 7-6, 7-3, 6-0. Li finally earned the title after losing twice in the finals -- to Kim Clijster in 2011, and to Victoria Azarenka last year.

The second-time grand slam winner Li Na struggled at first, not able to capitalize on early and late breaks in the first set, but picked up the level of play in the tiebreaker and never looked back from then on.

According to Fox News, "In both her previous Australian Open appearances, Li won the first set but went down in three. Against Azarenka last year, she stumbled and twisted her ankle, and needed a medical timeout after hitting her head on the court."

The third time was the charm for Li Na, who finally closed the deal in Melbourne after losing in the finals two times in 2011 and 2013. After the match, the champion told reporters: "At least, you know, I made it. Not like the last two times, always feeling (there was) one more step. But this time I'm so proud myself."

The match was really decided by the hotly contested first set, which took 70 minutes and included two exchanges of service breaks. There were some nervous moments for Li Na as she was struggling with her first serve. Eventually, the main damage was done by Li Na's two-handed backhand against the 5'3" Dominika Cibulkova, who was competing in her first Grand Slam at Rod Laver Arena.

At the end of the match, Li Na held up both thumbs then held back the tears as she left the court and immediately went to the stands to shake hands with her coach, Carlos Rodriguez.

However, Cibulkova, who had four wins against the top 20 players in the tournament, was content with her results, saying at the end of the final match: "These were just fantastic two weeks of my life. Hello to everybody in Slovakia. This means a lot for our country, and I'm happy I can be the one here for Slovakia."