Elise Mertens marked her return to the No. 1 ranking in women’s doubles by combining with China’s Zhang Shuai to win the Australian Open title today.
Mertens and Zhang trailed 3-0 and 4-1 in the first set but rallied to beat Anna Danilina of Kazakhstan and Serbia’s Aleksandra Krunic 7-6 (4), 6-4.
Mertens and Zhang led the final set 5-0 before withstanding a comeback attempt as Danilina and Krunic won four straight games.
Currently ranked No. 6 in doubles, Mertens, who won the Wimbledon doubles title last year with Veronika Kudermetova, will return to the No. 1 ranking after the Australian Open.
That will mark the Belgian player’s 40th cumulative week as No. 1 in doubles and was guaranteed regardless of the outcome of the Melbourne Park final.
The win was Mertens’ sixth Grand Slam doubles title, including victories at Melbourne Park in 2021 and 2024. Zhang now has three Grand Slam doubles titles, including the 2019 Australian Open and the 2021 US Open.
Source: msn.com
