In a dramatic and highly-anticipated final, the Italian duo of Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori successfully defended their US Open mixed doubles title, defeating the star-studded team of Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud. The victory came in a 6-3, 5-7, 10-6 battle, culminating a two-day “re-imagined” tournament that was designed to attract top singles players.
The win was more than just a title defense for Errani and Vavassori. As one of the few traditional doubles pairings in the revamped 16-team draw, which was largely comprised of singles-ranked players, they felt they were on a mission here. The new format, which was criticised by many doubles specialists, brought in a host of big names, including Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic and Venus Williams.
Despite the star power of their opponents, Swiatek is a six-time Grand Slam singles champion and Ruud has reached three major singles finals, the doubles expertise of the Italians was on full display. Errani and Vavassori showed their superior chemistry and net play, proving that tactical doubles skills was the key to victory over baseline power.
Watch the highlights below from the final:
The new tournament structure saw shortened sets and a two-day format, which was a significant departure from the traditional two-week, 32-team mixed doubles event. This was done to give the event a more prominent spot on the schedule, preceding the singles main draws and offering an increased $1 million prize to the champions.
After their victory, Errani and Vavassori acknowledged the significance of their win for the wider doubles community. “This is for all the doubles players who couldn’t play this tournament,” Errani said, while Vavassori added, “We showed today that doubles is a great product.” Their victory became a symbolic win for the specialists in a tournament that aimed to prioritise singles stars.
The Italians became the first repeat mixed doubles champions at Flushing Meadows since Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Jamie Murray in 2018-19.
