NEW YORK: India’s Sania Mirza captured her third Grand Slam mixed doubles title on Friday, winning the US Open crown with Brazilian partner Bruno Soares and then declared herself “a proud Indian”.
Mirza and Soares defeated American Abigail Spears and Mexico’s Santiago Gonazalez 6-1, 2-6, 11-9.
The winners, who shared $150,000, reached their first championship point at 9-4 but the runners-up won the next five points to extend the final.
Soares claimed a second US Open mixed doubles title to go with his 2012 victory with Russian Ekaterina Makarova. Mirza had lifted mixed doubles titles at the 2009 Australian Open and 2012 French Open with compatriot Mahesh Bhupathi.
Mirza’s win comes just a month after she was described by a Hindu nationalist politician as “Pakistan’s daughter-in-law” and unfit to be a representative of India.
The blast was delivered by K. Laxman, a regional legislator belonging to the national ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who questioned the credentials of Mirza to be “brand ambassador” for the country’s newest state Telengana.
Mirza, 27, and married to former Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik, broke down in tears over the controversy.
“It was tough, you know. Just before I left there was a lot happening at home. But, yeah. Still a proud Indian, I guess, five weeks later,” said Mirza, whose women’s doubles campaign with Zimbabwe partner Cara Black ended on Thursday at the hands of Martian Hingis and Flavia Pennatta.
Mirza and Soares, playing their first event together, needed six match points to take victory on Friday with the Indian star celebrating by performing an enthusiastic bunny hop into the arms of the Brazilian.
“I got tight. He held his nerve. I needed that a little bit with my serve. I was serving well till then,” said Mirza, who double faulted on the first match point.
“I was making a lot of first serves. It’s never easy. No matter how many you win, never easy to close it out.”
Mirza and Soares had each been successful mixed doubles players, so Mirza said during the trophy presentation that she wasn’t sure why it took them this long to pair up.
“I tried to play with Sania for a long time,” Soares said later.
“What a lie,” Mirza interjected.
“She finally gave me a chance to play,” Soares insisted.
Mirza is the first Indian to break into top 30 of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings in singles and top five in doubles.
During her singles career, she defeated many top players including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Vera Zvonareva and Marion Bartoli besides former world number ones Martina Hingis and Dinara Safina.
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