It may be fall, but in tennis, it’s never too late to change the tide. Caroline Wozniacki, the #6 player in the world, claimed her first title of the season at the Toray Pan Pacific Open defeating the Russian, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-0, 7-5.

The Danish superstar, against the odds, had persevered and taken a final – finally! Throughout the season, she had repeatedly demonstrated an inability to close out matches and heading into the Asian swing, was 0-6 in final appearances.

Plagued with self-doubt after losing six title matches this season, Wozniacki would be compelled to dig deep and remain committed to executing a more offensive game plan to claim the title. As the defending champion and winner in 2010, she could draw confidence from her previous victories and this undoubtedly had a tremendous impact on her impressive performance against the talented Russian.

Long labeled a “counter-puncher” and defensive player, Wozniacki, a former world number one, retooled both her serve and ground game, slowly morphing into a more offensive player. In Sunday’s final, she committed just 3 unforced errors and hit 16 winners.

Her explosive two-handed backhand down the line continued to pay dividends throughout the tournament as was her ability to repeatedly frustrate her opponents by changing the direction of the ball.

She has made a concerted effort to bolster her serve and in the final lost just three points in the first set, hit six aces and never faced a break point even in the highly competitive second set.

Displaying laser-like focus and a new-found assertiveness, she converted her third match point and maintained an extraordinary streak of winning at least one WTA title each season since 2008.

By defending her title, she will remain the #6 ranked player and in 5th place in the Porsche Race to Singapore. Unlike Angelique Kerber, the former world number one and 2016 US Open champion, Wozniacki overcame the immeasurable disappointment of repeated losses and on the road to victory this past Sunday in Tokyo, defeated the current world #1, Garbine Muguruza, 6-2, 6-0 in the semis.

At 27 years of age in her 7th final of the season, she won her 26th career title and 21st on hardcourts. With an abundance of belief and a sustained sense of urgency, she just may attain number 27 before the conclusion of 2017. Seems like 7 is now her lucky number!