WHAT HAPPENED: No. 16 seeds Erin Routliffe and Gabriela Dabrowski and No. 12 seeds Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva were both aiming for Grand Slam bragging rights in the US Open women's doubles final. Siegemund and Zvonareva were hoping to reclaim the title they first won in 2020, while Routliffe and Dabrowski were both aiming for their first women's doubles major crown together.
Ultimately, the relatively new pair of Dabrowski and Routliffe scored a 7-6(9), 6-3 upset for the biggest win of their careers.
It was clear from the first few minutes of the match that little separated both teams. With skilfull rallies and impeccably placed shots from both teams, neither pair was able to break and each traded service holds until they went into the first-set tiebreak just over an hour into the match.
Siegemund played her offensive game, utilizing her strength, power and strategic shot placement, while the Canadian and the New Zealander were near-brick walls at net, seemingly unable to let a ball go past them—although they did volley some straight into the net over the course of the match. They also saved eight of the nine break points they faced throughout the match.
The eventual champions took an early 4-1 lead in the tiebreak, but the determined Siegemund and Zvonareva were unwilling to let go of the first set. They had two set points, but were unable to capitalize due to a shot that went into the net and a winner from Routliffe.
Dabrowski and Routliffe came out firing in the second set, scoring the first break of the match in the second game and racing to a 3-0 lead in just 17 minutes.
But after such a tight start to the set, Siegemund and Zvonareva came back fighting. Siegemund took a medical time out during the changeover, which seemed to help her and Zvonareva reset and get back into a groove. They broke after hitting two winners and their opponents made three unforced errors, then held serve to bring the score to 3-2.
Buoyed by a vocal and packed box filled wih friends and family, Routliffe and Dabrowski capitalized on the support and stayed consistent throughout the match, getting 81% of returns in and winning 75% of their first serve points.
With Zvonareva serving at 3-5, the pair saved two championship points with volley winners from Siegemund. But two points later, Dabrowski and Routliffe dropped to their knees in delight after a backhand sent wide by Zvonareva wrapped up the match.
WHAT IT MEANS: This is the first title that Routliffe and Dabrowski have won as a team in only their fourth tournament together. They teamed up for the first time in Montreal earlier this summer. After reaching the second round there and in Cincinnati, they reached the semifinals in Cleveland the week before the US Open began.
Their success as a team is new, but both are strong doubles players with plenty of accolades—Routliffe had previously earned three WTA doubles titles, and Dabrowski has hoisted 13 doubles trophies on tour.
MATCH POINT: Routliffe is the first player from New Zealand in the Open Era to reach the semifinals of the women’s doubles draw at the US Open, and only the fourth to reach a Grand Slam women’s doubles semifinal. This is also a milestone for Dabrowski as she is the first Canadian to win a Grand Slam women's doubles title. Her previous best result was a runner-up showing at 2019 Wimbledon.
