Harriet Dart claimed her maiden WTA title after fighting back from a set down against the highly rated Lilli Tagger at the Guangzhou Open in China.

The 30-year-old was overcome by emotion after winning 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, which will propel her into the world’s top 100 and seal a place in the main draw at the Australian Open.

All of Dart’s five matches at the tournament went to three sets and she spent 11 hours and 54 minutes on court en route to the trophy. Including her two matches in qualifying, she spent more than 15 hours on court.

Dart, the British No 5, has enjoyed a return to the form she showed in 2024 when she was ranked 70th in the world after working with her coach, the former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli.

The partnership has been a fruitful one. Dart has won 19 of her 24 tour-level matches on hard courts since Wimbledon, and her overall record on the WTA tour this season is the best of her career.

Dart had two match points in the penultimate game on Tagger’s serve as she tried to close out the win. The nerves started to show on the second point when she scuppered the opportunity to put away a straightforward forehand, instead hitting the ball into the bottom of the net to offer hope to the 18-year-old Austrian.

Dart has been known for letting occasions get the better of her, memorably being reduced to tears multiple times during her second-round win over rival Katie Boulter at Wimbledon in 2024. But this time, she rallied from the mistake to serve out the final game, taking it to 15.

In the final few games of the match, Dart’s serve was solid and consistent, a significant improvement considering that it has always been an Achilles heel in her game.

She said on court: “I’ll try not to get too emotional. A big thank you to my team this week.

“It’s amazing to play in front of such a big crowd. It’s been so much fun here and I really appreciate it and hope to be back next year.”

Dart will be 83rd in the world, as the British No 3, when the new rankings are released.