Playing under a closed roof at Rod Laver Arena, Mladenovic and Dodig got off to a solid start, securing a crucial break at 4-3 before calling off the set after some big serves from the French women.
France’s Kristina Mladenovic and Croatian Ivan Dodig registered a 6-3, 6-4 win over local pair of Jamie Forlis and Jason Kubler to win the Australian Open mixed doubles crown at Melbourne Park on January 28.
Playing under a closed roof at Rod Laver Arena, Mladenovic and Dodig got off to a solid start, securing a crucial break at 4-3 before calling off the set after some big serves from the French women.
The Australian wildcard pair broke again early in the second set as Dodig’s brilliant play at the net proved to be too good for Forlis.
However, the 22-year-old made amends immediately and forced an error to break Dodig 2-2 to get back and level.
Momentum, however, quickly returned to Mladenovic and Dodig, and they secured another break, before a well-angled volley from Mladenovic gave the fifth-seeded pair their first Grand Slam title.
“We texted each other several times to play mixed. What a way to play with us for the first time,” Mladenovic said.
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