Ashleigh Barty made light work of Wang Qiang in the WTA Elite Trophy final to claim the biggest title of her career.

The Australian only needed 81 minutes to see off Wang in Zhuhai, the Australian cruising to a 6-3 6-4 victory that brings the third tournament win of her career.

Barty's week had begun with defeat to Aryna Sabalenka in the Orchid Group, but she battled back to beat Caroline Garcia and qualify for the semi-finals.

She needed to come from a set down to oust defending champion Julia Goerges in the last four, and her reward was a comfortable outing on Sunday.

Wang was immediately under pressure as Barty raced into a 4-0 lead, the world number 19 collecting 16 of the first 22 points in the match, her backhand proving a particularly good weapon.

While Barty flourished, Wang sprayed the ball wide and long all too often and, although she got back into the set, nothing was going to stop her opponent moving ahead.

The second set was much more competitive, with both players spurning break chances before Barty finally found a way through to lead 4-3.

That solitary break was enough to seal her the title, Barty finishing things off with a delicately sliced backhand that spun out of Wang's reach.