Krejcikova, Ram win mixed doubles title at Australian Open

Czech Republic’s Barbora Krejcikova and Rajeev Ram of the US celebrate their victory with the trophy after defeating Australia’s Astra Sharma and John-Patrick Smith in the mixed doubles final on day 13 of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 27, 2019 - AFP

MELBOURNE (Reuters): Third seeds BarboraKrejcikova and Rajeev Ram defeated local favourites Astra Sharma and John-Patrick Smith 7-6(3) 6-1 to win the mixed doubles title at the Australian Open on Saturday.

After edging a tight opening set, the experienced Ram and Krejcikova broke early in the second set and held firm to clinch the contest and deny their unseeded rivals.

It was the first taste of Grand Slam success for American Ram while Krejcikova, who won two women’s doubles majors with fellow Czech Katerina Siniakova last year, claimed her first mixed doubles Slam trophy.