Cibulkova breaks through

Fearless Dominika Cibulkova earned her first career grass title just hours before the start of Wimbledon, with the high-energy Slovak beating Karolina Pliskova 7-5, 6-3 in the Saturday final at the WTA Eastbourne tournament.Cibulkova, ranked 12, added the Eastbourne honours to a title she claimed in Poland in April.She was playing her her fourth final of the season after fighting back from Achilles tendon surgery in 2015.The pocket-rocket who stands just 1.61 metres, will move back to 19th in the rankings as she begins next week at the All England Club.“This is a very happy time, I won my first title on grass,” the holder of six career trophies said. “This is my best week ever on grass.“I’m so happy, I cannot believe that it happened today.I played well today in difficult (windy) conditions for both of us.”Cibulkova won the struggling first set on a fourth break of Czech Pliskova, who heads into Wimbledon with a title in Nottingham and the Eastbourne runner-up slot.Pliskova, who has surpassed 500 aces per season for a third straight year, went down a break for 1-3 in the second set and was eventually unable to close the gap.She was held to four aces in the final.Cibulkova fought through a 10-minute penultimate game featuring six deuces before serving out the victory a game later on her third match points from a Pliskova error.