Mertens, Sabalenka jumped to second Slam doubles at the Australian Open

Elise Mertens and Aryna Sabalenka made it 2-for-2 in the Grand Slam finals on Friday, as No.2 seeded the 3rd-seeded Czech squad of Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova at Rod Laver Arena, 6- 2, 6-3 to bid for the 2021 Australian Open women’s doubles tournament.

“We had a really good week or two,” said Mertens of Belgium, after she and Sabalenka of Belarus won another Grand Slam title to coincide with their 2019 US Open award. “We had a tough draw in doubles, so we’re really glad we pulled through. Some days, yeah, like today, we kept fighting.”

The winning team pulled through several close games to get the 79-minute win, waiting for 10 of the 11 rest points ahead at the time of the tilt. Mertens was the only player on the court who did not give up service as she and Sabalenka claimed their fifth title doubling a title as a tandem and improved their team’s win-lose record to 48-15.

For the two 20-best single players seeking Grand Slam glory in that discipline as well, the double court proved to be a relaxed atmosphere during the big event, with laughter and laughter all the time. game and collect the prize with their signature jump, as they did in Flushing Meadows 18 months ago.

“I think it’s great not to be stressed all the time,” Mertens said. “We have singles, and that’s a lot of pressure already. Then we have doubles, so we try to make it fun. But, of course, when we’re in court, we want to win.”

“From my point of view, I’d say I was very relaxed on doubles,” said Sabalenka, who helped with a thunderous serve guiding her team through dicey pieces. “I was doing anything I wanted.”

“She didn’t care about me!” Mertens smiled in response.

The pair’s victory in the tournament game served as a bittersweet skipper for the event, with Mertens and Sabalenka not planning to play the remaining Grand Slam events this season together. (They do, however, plan to play some of this year’s WTA events together, including Dubai and Miami.)

“I definitely like playing doubles,” Sabalenka said. “I just want to try something else. But I hope if I decide one day to come back in duplicates, I have this daughter here for me.”

“I like playing games,” Mertens said. “But, yeah, I mean, she can definitely try and we’ll see. If she’s still fond of playing doubles, I’m here.”

Three straight breaks in the middle of the opening set resulted in a 4-2 lead for No.2 seeds, as the powerful shots from Sabalenka were easily matched by the pin point hit from Mertens. An important service game with Mertens, where she stood four rest points, was punched by a winner over Sabalenka, stopping the series of breaks and moving that team to 5-2.

Serving to stay in the set, Siniakova fired three double shots, including on the final two points, to tie the one-set lead to Mertens and Sabalenka. In all, Siniakova had six double cracks in the opening set.

The Czechs could not break Mertens and Sabalenka in the second set, as their forecourt ferocity was as lame as usual. The Belgian / Belarusian pair were allowed to control their strong ground hits, and after seven straight service catches in the set, a strong return service with Sabalenka brought her team’s decisive break at 5-3.

A marathon match was followed on Sabalenka’s service, where cheaters at the net saw her team spout three competition points and go against three resting points. But an ace by Sabalenka brought up the point of game number four, at which point Siniakova’s backhand was widely flown, sending the cup to the waiting arms of Mertens and Sabalenka.

“I knew she could do it with her service,” Mertens laughed. “Apparently, I’ll stand at the net.”