By Glenys Furness
- Heather Watson made the final in Abu Dhabi
- The Brit dropped one set en route
- Defeated top seeds in first round
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Heather Watson & Linda Noskova entered the WTA doubles event and were unseeded. The Brit/Czech defeated the top seeds in the first round.
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Heather Watson teamed up with Linda Noskova and entered the WTA event in Abu Dhabi. The Brit/Czech drew the top seeds Nicole Melichar-Martinez & Ellen Perez. The American/Australian found Watson & Noskova too good in the first set. The Brit/Czech pair broke the top seeds early and took the lead. The second set saw both pairs stay toe-to-toe and forced a tiebreak. The breaker saw Watson & Noskova ease through and into the next round 6-3, 7-6(3).
The quarter-final saw the Brit/Czech against Shuko Aoyama & Aleksandra Krunic. The Japanese/Serbian pair forced a tiebreak in the first set. However, in the breaker Watson & Noskova dominated to claim the first set. The second set saw Aoyama & Krunic fight back, breaking the Brit/Czech to level up the match. The match tiebreak saw the Brit/Czech ease through to move into the next round 7-6(2), 3-6, 10-5.
In the semi-final Watson & Noskova were against Magda Linette & Bernarda Pera. However, the Pole/American pair were unable to take to the court, so handed a walkover to the Brit/Czech. Watson & Noskova moved into the final without hitting a ball 0-0 (RET).
The final saw the Brit/Czech against Sofia Kenin & Bethanie Mattek-Sands. The first set was close, as Watson & Noskova stayed with the Americans. Unfortunately, Kenin & Mattek-Sands broke serve right at the end of the set and took the lead. The second set was much closer, as the Brit/Czech stayed with the Americans and forced a tiebreak. In the breaker it was Kenin & Mattek-Sands that edged through and lifted the title 6-4, 7-6(4).
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Doubles Round Up
Julian Cash with Robert Calloway were defeated by William Blumberg & Rinky Hijikata in the first round in Dallas 3-6, 6-3, 10-7.
Henry Patten with Francisco Cabral were defeated by William Blumberg & Rinky Hijikata in the quarter-final in Dallas 3-6, 6-3, 10-8.
Neal Skupski with Santiago Gonzalez were defeated by Max Purcell & Jordan Thompson in the semi-final in Dallas 7-6(4), 6-3.
Samantha Murray Sharan with Oksana Kalashnikova were defeated by Eri Hozumi & Makoto Ninomiya in the first round in Cluj-Napoca 6-4, 6-1.
Olivia Nicholls with Elixane Lechemia were defeated by Harriet Dart & Tereza Mihalikova in the semi-final in Cluj-Napoca 3-6, 7-6(5), 10-4.
Harriet Dart with Tereza Mihalikova were defeated by Caty McNally & Asia Muhammad in the final in Cluj-Napoca 6-3, 6-4.
Jay Clarke with Sathi Reddy Chirala were defeated by Thomas Fancutt & Aziz Ouakaa in the first round in Hammamet 6-3, 6-0.
Charles Dossetter with Maxwell Weishan were defeated by Carlos Sanchez Jover & Shin Sanhui in the first round in Hammamet 6-1, 6-1.
Ewen Lumsden with Nikita Mashtakova were defeated by Liam Hignett & James MacKinley in the first round in Antalya 6-4, 6-2.
Emily Webley Smith with Sofia Shapatava were defeated by Anastasia Zolotareva & Rada Zolotareva in the first round in Antalya.
Liam Hignett & James MacKinley were defeated by Nick Hardt & Gabriel Roveri Sidney in the quarter-final in Antalya 6-3, 6-0.
Maia Lumsden with Jessika Ponchet were defeated by Emily Appleton & Freya Christie in the semi-final in Grenoble 6-7(7), 7-6(6), 10-3.
Alicia Barnett with Anastasia Detiuc were defeated by Sarah Beth Grey & Eden Silva in the semi-final in Grenoble 6-3, 6-4.
Sarah Beth Grey & Eden Silva were defeated by Emily Appleton & Freya Christie in the final in Grenoble 3-6, 6-1, 11-9.
Mark Whitehouse with Marek Gengel were defeated by Emile Hudd & David Stevenson in the final in Sharm-El-Sheikh 6-2, 6-4.
Adam Jones with Jack Vance were defeated by Peter Bertran & Mwendwa Mbithi in the first round in Sunrise 6-2, 3-6, 10-8.
Katie Swan with Jaimee Fourlis were defeated by Ma Ye-Xin & Alana Parnaby in the semi-final in Burnie 4-1(RET).
Next Week Brits play in Buenos Aires, Delray Beach, Manama, Cherbourg, Glasgow, Tunisia, Portugal, Germany, Egypt, Qatar, Roehampton & Spain.
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