TENNIS: Mertens and Zhang win Australian Open women's doubles crown

Fourth seeds Elise Mertens and Zhang Shuai beat Anna Danilina and Aleksandra Krunic 7-6(4) 6-4 to claim the Australian Open women's doubles title on Saturday, the first Grand Slam trophy the experienced duo have won together.

Victory gave Mertens her sixth Grand Slam title while Zhang won her third but they almost never made it to the final, having been forced to save three match points in the second round against teenagers Iva Jovic and Victoria Mboko.

They found themselves 4-1 down early on against the seventh seeds but clawed their way back and even took the lead before being forced into a tiebreak, where they steamed ahead and clinched the opening set in 55 minutes.

Mertens and Zhang carried that momentum into the second set where they raced into a 5-0 lead before Danilina and Krunic managed to get on the board.

Although they fought back and saved two championship points as Krunic lit up the Rod Laver Arena, the fourth seeds sealed victory on Mertens' serve when Zhang fired a backhand winner at the net.

-Rohith Nair/Reuters