Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza continued their historic 2015 season with a 6-7(9), 6-1, 10-8 win over Chan Hao-Ching and Chan Yung-Jan, claiming their 8th title of the season at the 2015 China Open.
Chan Sisters Win Tight Opening Set
Having met each other in Toronto, Cincinnati, Flushing Meadows/the U.S. Open, and Wuhan already this season, both teams were familiar with each other’s strengths and weaknesses. In those four encounters, both teams played exceptionally well and were able to match each other shot-for-shot both at the net and from the baseline. If the early exchanges were any indication of how this encounter would play out, the tennis-adoring Chinese crowd were in for a treat.
After breaking and holding serve in the opening two games, Hingis and Mirza sent out a clear and emphatic statement of intent. The Swiss-Indian duo suffered their last loss in Cincinnati, where they lost to the Chan sisters, and were not interested in a repeat of the same result. However, the Chan sisters, were not ready to let this match and title slip away so easily. After going down a break, the sisters replied with a hold and a break of their own, leveling the opening set at two-games-all.
At the end of the following game, there was some controversy. During the deciding point, Chan Hao-Ching attempted to intercept a backhand down the line that Hingis had hit. At the point of contact, there was a little sound and it appeared that she had touched the ball with her racquet, but the ball sailed right past her and landed out. Originally, it looked like Hingis and Mirza had won the point but the umpire gave the point to the Chan sisters, much to the dismay of the number one seeds. It appeared that the umpire didn’t hear the ball touch Chan Hao-Ching’s racquet and since Hingis’ backhand landed out, the point was awarded to the Chans. Hingis and Mirza appealed to the umpire multiple times during the changeover that followed, but to no avail.
Despite the controversy, both teams continued to hold their respective service games for the rest of the set. Both teams had their chances to break, and the Chan sisters even held two set points on Mirza’s serve while leading 5-4, but were unable to capitalize on either of them. As a result, the set would be decided with a tiebreak.
In that tiebreak, Hingis and Mirza held a 4-0 advantage but, that lead was quickly diminished by the Chan sisters’ aggressive hitting and interceptions at the net. The number one seeds held their first set point on Chan Yung-Jan’s serve while leading 6-5, but that was saved with some clever play from the Taiwanese sisters. Moments later, the Chans held their third set point of the set, but that was saved with some great reflex volleys from Hingis and Mirza. After saving another set point, the Swiss-Indian duo earned themselves another set point, but were unable to convert when opportunities presented themselves. A few points later, the Chan sisters finally won a point on the receiving end, which gave them their first chance to serve for the set with their own serve. In the end, the sisters needed five set points but only needed one on their own serve, to win the topsy-turvy opening set, 7-6(9).
Hingis and Mirza Rebound in Emphatic Fashion
The second set began much like the end of the first, with both teams matching each other from all parts of the court. It wasn’t until the fourth game of the second set where Hingis and Mirza’s class and experience began to show. Some loose unforced errors from the Chan sisters at the worst possible time gave the number one seeds two break points. This time, Hingis and Mirza made no mistake, breaking at the first time of asking to go up a 3-1 lead in the second set. From there, the number one seeds won 16 of the next 17 points and with that, they won the second set 6-1.
Hingis and Mirza Win Super Tiebreak and 8th Title of 2015
Early in the super tiebreak, it was clear that Hingis and Mirza’s level had risen considerably, and the level of the Chan sisters had dropped significantly. After clinching a mini break, things were looking to be relatively straight forward for the number one seeds. However, the sisters from Chinese Taipei had other ideas. Raising their level at just the right time, the unseeded partnership recovered the mini break, and began to play some of the tennis that won them the opening set. After exchanging another mini break, there was not much to separate both teams. After changing ends at 3-3, both teams held all of their respective service points until the Chan sisters served trailing 7-8. A crucial unforced error from the sisters gave Hingis and Mirza a mini break and two championship points. Chan/Chan saved the first of those two match points but not the second, as Hingis put away an easy volley to seal yet another title for the number one seeds. With a 6-7(9), 6-1, 10-8 victory, Hingis and Mirza claimed their 8th doubles title of the season and cemented their status as the best doubles team of 2015.