Kirilenko and Petrova Win Doubles at Istanbul

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Kirilenko and Petrova Win Doubles at Istanbul

By Chris Oddo

(October 28, 2012) —The last doubles team to qualify for Istanbul saved their best for last.

Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova defeated the Czech duo of Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka for the second time in 2012, winning the WTA Championships doubles title in convincing fashion, 6-1, 6-4.

After playing a dominant first set, the Russian duo survived a hard-fought second set, saving all three break points they faced and converting on one of three of their own to clinch the title in one hour and twelve minutes.

The win marks the second title of the year for the Russian duo, who also triumphed in Miami in 2012 in addition to reaching the French Open final after defeating Hradecka and Hlavackova in the semifinal round. Petrova and Kirilenko, who own a combined 33 doubles title between them (12 for Kirilenko and 21 for Petrova), also won the Olympic Bronze medal this year at Wimbledon.

“I’m very proud—I think we played solid tennis today,” Petrova said in an on-court interview after the match.

Petrova and Kirilenko did not qualify for the fourth and final spot at the WTA Championships until defeating Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears in the semifinals at the Kremlin Cup just over a week ago.

After winning the prestigious event, Petrova and Kirilenko can head home with an extra $187,500k in their bank accounts. The runners-up earned $93,750k for their efforts.

The title was Petrova’s second WTA Championships title. She won the even in 2004 while paired with Meghann Shaughnessy.