MELBOURNE, Australia — Elise Mertens marked her return to the top spot in the women’s doubles rankings on Saturday when she teamed up with China’s Zhang Shuai to win the Australian Open title.
Mertens and Zhang trailed 3-0 and 4-1 respectively in the first set, but then defeated Kazakhstan’s Anna Danilina and Serbia’s Alexandra Krunic 7-6 (4), 6-4. Mertens/Maggie Cheung led 5-0 in the deciding set, and then Danilina/Krunic won four consecutive games and finally successfully reversed the situation.
Mertens, who is currently ranked sixth in doubles, won the Wimbledon doubles championship with Veronika Kudermetova last year and will return to the world’s number one position after the Australian Open.
It will mark the Belgian’s 40th consecutive week as doubles number one and is guaranteed regardless of the outcome of Saturday’s final at Melbourne Park.
Saturday’s victory was Mertens’ sixth Grand Slam doubles title, including doubles titles at Melbourne Park in 2021 and 2024. Zhang has now participated in three tournaments, including the 2019 Australian Open and the 2021 US Open.
In the subsequent men’s doubles final, American Christian Harrison and British Neil Skupsky will face the Australian pair of Jason Kubler and Mark Polmans. Kubler compiled a 14-3 doubles record in his home majors.
Harrison and Skupski, who competed with different partners at last year’s ATP Finals, competed as a team for the first time in Adelaide earlier this month and reached the semi-finals.
The mixed doubles final was held on Friday, with Australian pair Olivia Gadecki/John Pearce defeating French pair Kristina Mladenovic/Manuel Guinard 4-6, 6-3, 10-8, becoming the first team to win back-to-back titles since 1989.
