No Title for Hingis: Williams Sisters Win Doubles

PARIS — Venus and Serena Williams won their first Grand Slam women’s doubles title, enduring two rain delays and defeating the second-seeded team of Martina Hingis and Anna Kournikova, 6-3, 6-7 (7-2), 8-6, in the French Open final Sunday.

The Williamses, seeded ninth, are only the second sister team to win a Grand Slam doubles event. In 1890, Ellen and Grace Roosevelt won what is now called the U.S. Open.

Last year, Venus Williams won two Grand Slam mixed doubles titles with Justin Gimelstob, and Serena Williams won the other two with Max Mirnyi of Belarus.

But the Williamses acknowledged that the doubles title didn’t compensate for their singles’ defeats at Roland Garros.

“I would have for sure preferred to have won a singles title,” Serena Williams said. “Anyone who . . . would prefer to win the doubles title would have to be mentally unsound. . . . I’m still bitter and resentful.” Added Venus: “No, I don’t feel better. . . . I’m not sure if I’ll ever get over this part.”

It was also a difficult tournament for Hingis. She lost the singles championship match to Steffi Graf on Saturday in three sets and was fined $1,500 by the Grand Slam committee Sunday for unsportsmanlike conduct. Hingis was given a point penalty for crossing over to Graf’s side of the court to argue a line call.

She acknowledged she did not have a restful night. “How can you sleep if you lose a match like that?” Hingis said. “If you lose a match, you don’t wake up the next day and want to do something, that’s not good.

“With Anna playing, that gave me the other motivation. If I would have played with somebody else, I wouldn’t go. But for Anna, yes.”