Beatriz Haddad Maia & Victoria Azarenka Claim Women’s Doubles Title at Madrid Open

Beatriz Haddad Maia is celebrating a winning debut…

In their maiden tournament as a team, the 26-year-old Brazilian tennis player and Victoria Azarenka defeated top seeds Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula 6-1, 6-4 on Sunday to capture the women’s doubles title at the Mutua Madrid Open.

Beatriz Haddad Maia & Victoria Azarenka  The victory capped off a stellar week for the unseeded duo, who toppled two of the Top 3 seeds to win their first tournament together.

Madrid is Haddad Maia’s fifth career doubles title and the biggest title of her career. She was previously a two-time runner-up at the WTA 1000 level, including at Indian Wells this spring with Laura Siegemund.

The title is Azarenka’s 10th doubles title and fifth at the WTA 1000 level. It is her biggest win on the doubles court since teaming with Ashleigh Barty to win Rome in 2019.

Beatriz Haddad Maia & Victoria AzarenkaIn their team debut at Madrid, Azarenka and Haddad Maia ousted No.3 seeds and Stuttgart champions Desirae Krawczyk and Demis Schuurs in their opening round and went to defeat Paula Badosa/Bethanie Mattek Sands and Leylah Fernandez/Taylor Townsend en route to the final.

Facing down No.1 seeds Gauff and Pegula, who were bidding to win their third title of the season after Doha and Miami, Azarenka and Haddad Maia raced away in the opening to pocket it 6-1. The American team bounced back to lead 4-2 in the second set but Azarenka and Haddad Maia roared back to win the last four games of the match.

After breaking Pegula’s serve to close level the set at 4-4, the eventual champions closed out the win by dominating play at the net and breaking Gauff’s serve in the final game.

Puig Beats Garbine Muguruza to Reach Quarterfinals at the 2016 Rio Games

2016 Rio Games

Monica Puig is one step closer to gold

The 22-year-old Puerto Rican tennis player, competing in her first Olympics, routed French Open champion Garbine Muguruza 6-1, 6-1 on Tuesday to reach the 2016 Rio Games quarterfinals, notching the biggest win of her career.

Monica Puig

“You just go in shock,” she said.

Even with the big lead, keeping it together through those last couple of games was tricky.

“You start getting emotional, and there’s no hiding it,” Puig said. “You start feeling those butterflies, those nerves. It’s all of that coming out.

Ranked 34th in the world, Puig has never reached the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam. Now she’s two wins from an Olympic medal.

She’ll face a player with a similar ranking for a spot in the semifinals: No. 32 Laura Siegemund, a 28-year-old German who is having a career year. Siegemund won her first WTA title at the Swedish Open last month.

At the 2013 French Open, Puig became the first woman representing Puerto Rico to reach the third round at a major in the Open era, which began in 1968. But at her first Olympics, her nationality takes on much more resonance.

“When I’m playing in the WTA, it’s more like I’m playing for myself — my job, let’s say,” she said. “Here, it’s not really my job. It’s for my country, and I think nothing in the world can compare to that. It’s the most special feeling when you put on your colors of your country and you’re walking around the Olympic Village and everybody looks to see your country on the back of your shirt.”

Muguruza is already a major champion. But after beating Serena Williams in the final at Roland Garros for her first Grand Slam title, the Spaniard lost in the second round at Wimbledon. She had 29 unforced errors to 15 winners on Tuesday.