Chan Yung-jan yesterday failed to complete a hat-trick of titles this month at the Internationaux de Strasbourg, but the Taiwanese will none the less head to the French Open as the pre-tournament favorite to win her first Grand Slam.
Following back-to-back wins in Madrid and Rome alongside Martina Hingis, the Taiwanese teamed up with younger sister Chan Hao-ching this week, but failed extend her 11-match winning streak, falling to a 6-4, 6-2 loss to Australian duo Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua in 1 hour, 18 minutes in the doubles final in Strasbourg, France.
The Australians saved 10 of 11 break points and converted four of eight as they claimed their second title of the year following their victory at the Malaysian Open in March.
Photo: Reuters
The victory gave the Australians a 2-0 career record against the Chan sisters after they won their previous encounter, a semi-final victory in Strasbourg in 2014.
The Chan sisters now head to Roland Garros for the second Grand Slam of the year.
Chan Yung-jan and Martina Hingis have been handed the third seeding in Paris, while Chan Hao-ching and Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic are seeded 12th.
Joining the Chan sisters in Paris are fellow Taiwanese Hsieh Su-wei and Lu Yen-hsun.
Hsieh faces a tough opening match against seventh seed Johanna Konta of Britain in the women’s singles, although the Taiwanese world No. 109 will take heart that she won their only previous encounter, a 6-4, 6-3 victory on the grass courts in Eastbourne, England, in 2013.
In the men’s singles, world No. 58 Lu has been drawn against Ukrainian qualifier and world No. 122 Sergiy Stakhovsky.
Lu and Stakhovsky have a 1-1 career record, with the Ukrainian winning in Seoul in May last year, before Lu avenged that defeat in Manchester, England, the following month.
At the Nuernberger Versicherungscup on Friday, Chung Chia-jung’s bid for the doubles title ended when the Taiwanese player’s partner, Misaki Doi of Japan, quit her singles semi-final against Kiki Bertens with an abdominal injury early in the second set.
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