Cibulkova stops Bartoli to win Carlsbad crown

Dominika Cibulkova beat top-seeded Marion Bartoli 6-1, 7-5 Sunday to win the WTA Carlsbad crown, warming up for the London Olympics with her second career title. The second seed from Slovakia needed 95 minutes to overcome her fatigued French opponent, whose sixth double fault of the contest gave Cibulkova three match points. Cibulkova needed only one, falling on her back in joy after converting it. "Today I played well all through the match," said Cibulkova, who added the title to the trophy she won in Moscow last year. "In the past finals I was nervous. This was the first one where I just went for it -- everything went my way. "I've changed my coach recently, and I'm more relaxed on the court. It's all working out really well for me," added the 23-year-old, who will represent Slovakia at the London Games in both singles and doubles. Bartoli ran out of puff after a long week on court that included a series of three-set matches as she struggled with a sore hip. By the time they reached the final, world No. 10 Bartoli had spent a total of four more hours on court than Cibulkova. Cibulkova, who is slated to rise one place to 13th in the world when the rankings are released on Monday, was playing in her second final of the season, after losing in the title match in Barcelona. After a first set that ended with her double fault on set point, Bartoli turned the tables with two service breaks for a 4-1 lead in the second. Cibulkova responded by winning four straight games. She broke Bartoli for a second time in the set to knot the score at 4-4, winning 13 of 16 points during that surge. Cibulkova then broke Bartoli one last time to seal the match in which she won six of the last seven games. "I lost, but Dominika played a great match," said Bartoli, who won't be playing at the Olympics due to a long-running dispute with French tennis officials over the continuing presence of her father, Walter, as her only coach. "I wish her good luck at the Olympics," Bartoli said. "I fought hard in my previous matches, today I just came up a bit short."