Jankovic beats Suarez Navarro in Andalucia final

MADRID (Reuters) - World number four Jelena Jankovic battled to a 6-3 3-6 6-3 win over Carla Suarez Navarro on Sunday to claim her first title of the season at the Andalucia Tennis Championships.

The 20-year-old Spaniard gave Jankovic a stiff test in sunny and breezy conditions on the clay in Marbella but the Serbian second seed prevailed thanks to her consistency and power.

The win gave Jankovic, who ended 2008 at the top of the world rankings, a much needed boost as she has struggled to make an impact during the 2009 season.

"I know I have not been playing well the last three months but this win has given me back the confidence I need," Jankovic said at a news conference.

Jankovic recently said her mother's health problems were affecting her tennis but on Sunday she finally managed to focus on her tennis.

She won the first set relatively comfortably with two breaks of serve before Suarez Navarro, playing in her first WTA tour final, produced a string of superb passing shots to claim the second.

The 34th-ranked Suarez Navarro's challenge faded in the deciding set and she allowed Jankovic to storm into a 5-1 lead.

The Spaniard briefly rallied to break Jankovic as she served for the match and then saved two match points on her own serve in the next game.

Jankovic sealed victory and her 10th career title when Suarez Navarro netted a return on the fifth match point.

(Reporting by Iain Rogers; editing by Pritha Sarkar; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)