Routliffe and Muhammad's Run Ends in Third Round

Erin Routliffe and her American partner Asia Muhammad’s run at the Australian Open has come to an end with a three-set loss in the third round of the women’s doubles championships this afternoon.

They were beaten by 41-year-old Vera Zvonareva and Ena Shibahara of Japan 7-5 3-6 6-1 in a match lasting nearly two and a half hours on John Cain Arena.

Routliffe and Muhammad, the sixth seeds, started strongly in the first set breaking the Shibahara serve in the third game for a 3-1 lead. This was snuffled out quickly with an immediate break back on Muhammad’s serve. Routliffe and Muhammad had their chances to further extend their lead with three break points on the Zvonareva serve but couldn’t convert. At 5-5 Zvonareva and Shibahara earned a valuable break for a 6-5 lead and then served for the set which they took 7-5. Due to the large number of long rallies, the set took 68 minutes and could have gone either way. Routliffe and Muhammad’s opponents had come into the match with a game plan of mixing up their play and using the lob strategically and it worked, particularly on key points .

The second set started much the same as the first, Muhammad serving first and holding and then again breaking the Shibahara serve in the fourth game of the set for a 3-1 lead which they extended to 4-1 as they upped their aggression, improving their service statistics and their volleys which were crisper and deeper  Muhammad served for the set at 5-3 with both they hitting out strongly, it was an easy hold to clinch the set 6-3 despite the distractions of an aerial acrobatics display to celebrate Australia Day.

Zvonareva and Shibahara stunned Routliffe and Muhammad from the outset of third set to romp to a 5-0 lead when Muhammad held her serve. Shibahara then served out the match 6-1, heaping credit on her older partner Zvonareva who won the title in 2012. “It’s my love of the game that brings me back to the court,” Zvonareva told an appreciative crowd  in her post-match interview.

Routliffe’s coach Neil Carter says it is still early days for Routliffe and Muhammad, a new combination who played together at both the Auckland and Adelaide events. “There is still some confusion over who is taking the ball in certain scenarios,” he says They will take a week’s break before heading to tournaments in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Doha.