Laura Robson was thwarted in her bid to become Britain's first WTA Tour singles champion for 24 years.
She was beaten by Chinese Taipei's Hsieh Su-wei in the final of the Guangzhou International Open.
The 18-year-old looked set to lose in straight sets but saved five match points and then went 3-0 up in the decider only for world number 53 to fight back and win 6-3 5-7 6-4 in hot and humid conditions in China.
Robson was not even born the last time Britain had a singles finalist in 1990 when Jo Durie made the final of the WTA event in Newport, Rhode Island.
It has nevertheless been a brilliant week for Robson, who has built on her superb run to the fourth round of the US Open and will climb into the world's top 70 for the first time when the new rankings come out on Monday.
