Stakhovsky, Youzhny win doubles

Dubai: Sergiy Stakhovsky and Mikhail Youzhny made it a memorable second final for themselves when they fought back from a set down to beat the pairing of Jeremy Chardy and Feliciano Lopez 4-6, 6-3, 1-0 (3) to claim the doubles crown at the Dubai Duty Free Men's Open on Saturday.

Teaming up for only their second final as a doubles pairing, Stakhovsky and Youzhny took their time to settle in. But once that happened, there was no stopping them as they steamed ahead for the title.

"You really can't say this was the best match for us. But I do think that we went on improving all the while as the match progressed," Youzhny told media after the final.

"And then when it really mattered we played a solid tie-break and got an early lead. And that sort of clinched us the win," added Stakhovsky.

The first time that Youzhny and Stakhovsky came together as a pair was at the French Open last year. Though they did not prosper at Roland Garros, the pair won their first-ever doubles crown at Halle in June 2010.

Yesterday, they were not off to the best of starts as Chardy and Lopez broke on Stakhovsky's serve and then held for an early 2-0 lead. Chardy and Lopez then survived some anxious moments for the tall Spaniard to serve out for the set 6-4 in 33 minutes before a near-packed centre court here.

Both pairs went on serve for the initial part of the second set, but Youzhny and Stakhovski got their lucky break in the sixth game to go 4-2 clear. They then just held their nerves till Youzhny served out the set 6-3 to push the title for a super tie-break decider.

The Ukrainian and Russian were off to an early 5-1 lead and that sort of helped them keep the momentum as they went on to win the tie-breaker 10-3 and clinch only their second doubles title as a pair.

"The singles match certainly helps, but the doubles is completely different," Youzhny said.

"The tie-breaker can go either way. But it helped us that we were off to a great start when we were 5-1 in the lead," Stakhovsky said.

This was the first time that Stakhovsky was playing doubles in Dubai, while Youzhny has been a former two-time men's singles finalist. And neither had any plans of stopping their combination as a doubles pair on tour. "We are good friends off the court and we would definitely like to continue in future tournaments," Stakhovsky said.

Results:

Mikhail Youzhny/Sergiy Stakhovsky bt Jeremy Chardy/Feliciano Lopez 4-6, 6-3, 1-0 (3).