"Proud" - Serena Williams' ex-coach, Rajeev Ram & tennis world rejoice as doubles specialists Sara Errani & Andrea Vavassori triumph at US Open

The tennis world reacted to doubles specialists Andrea Vavassori & Sara Errani triumphing in the US Open mixed doubles, proving their worth despite the tournament's attempt to lure big names for generating revenue. Vavassori and Errani won their third major title as a pair, trouncing Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud.

The new format of mixed doubles has sparked controversy in the world of tennis. This revamped version, taking place as a stand-alone event, featured a first-to-four-games format across three sets, with no full third set, replaced instead by a 10-point tiebreak, and no advantage scoring after deuce. The roster included an unprecedented number of top-ranked singles players as direct entrants based on their combined singles rankings, meaning more doubles specialists received wild cards.

As Errani and Vavassori attained victory as the only specialists in the draw, they garnered love from the reigning Cincinnati doubles champion, Rajeev Ram, and Serena Williams' ex-coach, Rennae Stubbs, among others.

Ram congratulated the pair for defying the odds, writing:

"Full credit to #Errani and #Vavassori. I’m sure it wasn’t easy to be the overwhelming favorites in this event and then get the job done. Forza!"

Stubbs lauded the players in the same line, commenting:

"Go doubles players! Proud of you. What a fun final."

Australian former doubles No.1 Paul McManee noted how the reigning champions outpaced a heavily seeded field of singles players and proved themselves.

"Sara Errani & Andrea Vavassori, who only play doubles, defend their US Open Mixed title in a field top heavy with 28 singles players, mostly current or former top 10. It was ‘Hopman Cup’ style drama, and the honour of doubles techniques and teamwork is maintained. Bravo."

Some fan reactions included:

"this is amazing! the us open upped the prize money and tried their hardest to give it to singles players. absolutely love seeing an actual mixed doubles team win!" a fan commented.

"All those singles players in the draw, only for the real doubles pair to win. Please respect the sport a little more next year!" a comment read.

Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori called out the US Open for the drastic format change

Errani and Vavassori at the 2025 US Open - Mixed Doubles - (Source: Getty)

While it was an exciting development for players like Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz to test the ground before the singles, it brought out the worst in the doubles specialists. In an Instagram post in February, Andrea Vavassori called out the US Open for focusing only on 'exhibition and show'.

"In the last few weeks we received the news that US Open mixed doubles tournament will be completely turned upside down, cancelled and replaced with a pseudo-exhibition focused only on entertainment and show.A decision made without consulting anyone, which we can do nothing but accept it.We see it as a profound injustice, that disrespect an entire category of players. Put money above tennis is never a good idea."

As the only specialists mixed doubles players in the draw, Andrea Vavassori & Sara Errani 6-3, 5-7, 10-6, leaving Swiatek and Ruud behind. When they reached the final, Vavassori stated that they were playing for all the doubles players on the tour.

"We're on a mission."

Singles top-seeded players like Carlos Alcaraz, paired with Emma Raducanu, but they were ousted by Jack Draper and Jessica Pegula in the Round of 16. Meanwhile, World No.1 Jannik Sinner withdrew due to health issues, which also kept specialist Katerina Siniakova out.

About the author

Agnijeeta is a US Olympics journalist at Sportskeeda. She holds a Master’s degree in English and has worked as a school teacher, a blogger, a content writer and a sports writer over the past 5 years. A lover of high-adrenaline track and field events, she was also a sprinter during her school days.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone happens to be her favorite Olympian, and the athlete’s feat of breaking four records within 13 months inspires her, apart from the American's body language on and off the track. Grant Hackett swimming with a partially dysfunctional lung and winning gold in Athens is her all-time favorite Olympic moment.

Agnijeeta believes that deriving of unique angles from podcasts and interviews carried out by Olympics.com, along with hype-building of potential Olympic events on social media can help fill the coverage gap during the off season.

When not at her work desk, Agnijeeta likes to sing and paint. She also plays string instruments like guitar and ukulele and is an avid player of word puzzles.

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Edited by Pratham K Sharma