Duan Yingying became the first Chinese winner of the Wuhan Open, as she and her first-time partner Veronika Kudermetova beat Aryna Sabalenka and Elise Mertens 7-6(3), 6-2 in the doubles final in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province on Saturday night.
Having won the Wuhan Open singles title earlier in the day, Sabalenka started the doubles final as she meant to go on, with the big-serving Belarusian scoring an ace with the opening shot of the match.
However, Duan/Kudermetova matched Sabalenka/Mertens stroke for stroke, with both pairs serving up three aces over the course of a first set that went to a tiebreak with neither duo having lost any service games.
Roared on by a capacity crowd, Duan/Kudermetova turned the screw in the tiebreak, going 4-0 up before ultimately seeing out the set with a 7-3 victory.
The second set began in an equally tight fashion as both pairs held their service games to 3-2, before Duan/Kudermetova stretched their legs to take the following three games and finish with a 6-2 set win.
Duan Yingying and Veronika Kudermetova gesture to fans after winning the Wuhan Open double final at the Optics Valley International Tennis Center in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, September 28, 2019. /VCG Photo
"I enjoyed playing here at Wuhan. I come every year. I like the fans here," said a delighted Duan. "They're very passionate. Every time we play, we see fans cheering for us. I like that. That will bring me much positive energy. I enjoy everything here at Wuhan."
"She [Kudermetova] is a powerful player. On court, we both focus on our offense, so we play an aggressive game," added Duan.
"I didn't think a lot because we needed some time to get to know each other. It's beyond my expectations that we did really well this week."
Her sentiment was echoed by Kudermetova. "I think we did a great job during the whole week. I was very happy to play with her this week. Maybe we play next time also together. It's an unbelievable week."