Canada’s Gabriela Dabrowski & New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe, the defending champions, got off to a good start at the WTA Finals Riyadh, presented by PIF, with an impressive 6-3 7-6(2) win over all-Russian duo Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider, against whom they were winless in two matches they played this season.
They are a very difficult match for us. Their lobs are great, their defense is great, you have to put away so many balls; it feels like the point never ends. I think we did a good job in the big moments of putting the ball away and staying aggressive. Erin Routliffe
Dabrowski & Routliffe opened the Liezel Huber Group action with their 1 hour 23 minute win, taking their record in Riyadh to a perfect 6-0.
The No. 3 seeds took a close first set and had to take a break in the second as fifth-seeded Andreeva & Shnaider started their WTA Finals debut.
Trailing 3-5, Dabrowski & Routliffe won three games in a row and dominated the final breaker.
“It’s a very difficult game for us. Their lobs are great, their defense is great, you have to put away so many balls; it feels like the point never ends,” Routliffe said afterwards. “I think we did a good job in the big moments of throwing the ball away and staying aggressive.”
After neither pair got a decisive deuce point on serve in the first set, Dabrowski & Routliffe won 3 of the 4 games in which there was one in the second set.
“I thought we really hung in there in the second set, which was great,” Dabrowski said. “I thought our energy was good, and it helped us get through some tight spots, some deuce points. They’re never easy with the scoring format, so I’m really proud of us.”
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In the late evening doubles match, Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic and Taylor Townsend of the US got off to a great start, with the No. 2 seeds racing through the first set 6-2 in just over 30 minutes and jumping to a 3-1 lead in the second.
Although Hungarians Timea Babos and Brazil’s Luisa Stefani had struggled to find any rhythm during the first twelve matches, they suddenly turned the momentum around and won five consecutive matches to force an unexpected match tiebreak.
However, Siniakova & Townsend regrouped in the nick of time and rediscovered their early form to seal the win.
“I mean, it’s tennis, you know,” Townsend said after the match. “We had some chances that we missed, and they started to play a lot more freely. With this format, everything can change.” [so fast]where it is not an advertisement and a 10 point tiebreaker. So it happens, but I was really happy with the way we stayed cool, calm and collected and got back on the same page for the tiebreaker.
Townsend also shared her excitement about reuniting with Siniakova, as the WTA Finals marked their first tournament together in almost two months.
“I haven’t been to her since the US Open,” she said. “So it feels very good to be on the field with her again.”
While the win wasn’t as smooth as they had hoped, it did take their record to 29-5 this season and improve their WTA Finals record to 5-1 over the past two seasons.
Their only defeat came in last year’s final against Dabrowski & Routliffe, and this year they look to go one step further as Siniakova chases a second Martina Navratilova trophy and Townsend looks for her first.
“It’s the last tournament of the year and we just want to do our best and have fun on the court,” Townsend added. “So that’s the goal.”
Erin Routliffe and Gabriela Dabrowski lifted the double WTA Finals trophy in 2024 and are looking to defend their title this year
© Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
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