Sania Mirza, Rajeev Ram reach second round of mixed doubles at Australian Open

Sania Mirza and Rajeev Ram moved into the mixed doubles second round of the Australian Open with a confident straight-set win over Serbia's Aleksandra Krunic and Nikola Cacic on Thursday.

Published : Jan 20, 2022 14:24 IST , MELBOURNE

India's Sania Mirza hits a return behind partner Rajeev Ram of the US during their mixed doubles match against Serbia's Aleksandra Krunic and Nikola Cacic.
India's Sania Mirza hits a return behind partner Rajeev Ram of the US during their mixed doubles match against Serbia's Aleksandra Krunic and Nikola Cacic.
lightbox-info

India's Sania Mirza hits a return behind partner Rajeev Ram of the US during their mixed doubles match against Serbia's Aleksandra Krunic and Nikola Cacic.

Sania Mirza and Rajeev Ram moved into the mixed doubles second round of the Australian Open with a confident straight-set win over Serbia's Aleksandra Krunic and Nikola Cacic on Thursday.

Ram anchored the 6-3, 7-6(3) win in the opening round match that lasted 69 minutes. Ram is a defending champion in the event. He had won the mixed title with Czech partner Barbora Krejcikova in 2021.

Mirza, who will retire after the 2022 season, also served well in the contest.

They had a chance to go up as early as the second game, but Mirza buried a forehand into the net on the deciding point.

The team got another chance on the serve of Krunic, but that chance also went begging when Mirza could not finish the point with a volley. However, they got the break on the deciding point.

 

Ram then served out the next game at love for a 4-1 lead.

Mirza too made a lot of first serves as the team cruised towards a first-set lead. Ram's solid serving and Mirza's smooth volleys sealed the set for the Indo-American team.

Mirza unleashed her big forehand to Krunic on a weak return from Cacic to earn the first break chance of the second set. But the Indian hit the forehand long on the deciding point.

A stunning cross-court winner by Mirza earned the team two breakpoints on Krunic's serve in the sixth game.

But the Serbians held the game as Krunic served wide, and Mirza's return was dispatched for a volley winner by Cacic.

READ|

At 5-5, Krunic came out serving big for a crucial hold and now Mirza had to serve under pressure to stretch it to a tie-breaker. But the Indian made no mistake and served out the game at love.

Both Krunic and Cacic lost a point each on their serves to hand their opponents three match points. An error in return of serve by Cacic sealed it for Mirza and Ram.

Mirza, seeded 12th with Nadiia Kichenok, went down to Kaja Juvan and Tamara Zidansek 4-6, 6-7 (5) in women's doubles.

Rohan Bopanna is also in the fray in the mixed doubles event. He has paired up with Croatia's Darija Jurak Schreiber and will be in action on Saturday.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment