Erin Routliffe and Gabriela Dabrowski are a Grand Slam winning couple.
Photo: AFP
New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe and her doubles partner Gaby Dabrowski won the US Open women’s doubles final.
Routliffe and Canadian Dabrowski defeated higher-seeded pair Laura Siegemund of Germany and Vera Zvonareva of Russia 7-6, 6-3 at Flushing Meadows.
Routliffe, 28, became the first senior New Zealand player to make it to the US Open final.
Routliffe’s share of the prize money – $350,000 – from Monday’s victory exceeds her career earnings to date.
The US Open was Routliffe and Dabrowski’s second tournament together, having played together for the first time in Montreal five weeks ago.
Routliffe and Dabrowski saved eight of the nine break points they faced in a game that lasted two hours and 14 minutes.
Siegemund and Zvonareva failed to capitalize on any of their five break point chances in a hard-fought first set that required a tiebreak.
A quick start to the tiebreak put Dabrowski and Routliffe 4-0 up, but Siegemund and Zvonareva stormed back to make it 4-4 and even secured two set points, but it was the Canadian and New Zealander who came out on top with their fourth Setpoint secured victory.
Dabrowski and Routliffe took that momentum into the second set, where they quickly hit a double break for a 3-0 lead that put them on the right track, and as they ended the game with their third championship point, they managed another break.
“She really took my chances and I really appreciate her for that,” Routliffe said emotionally about Dabrowski on the court after the game.
Dabrowski was also “grateful” to share the court with Routliffe in a year that she said was difficult for both players.
“I’m really, really proud of how we’ve stood by each other through thick and thin over the last two weeks,” Dabrowski said.
Siegemund and Zvonareva won the 2020 US Open women’s doubles title.
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