Peschke and Srebotnik win doubles title in Auckland

It was nice while it lasted, but the dream run of Kiwi Marina Erakovic in the ASB Classic doubles came to an abrupt end as she and Swedish partner Sofia Arvidsson were trounced 6-3 6-0 in the final.

After racing through the draw without losing a set, the scratch combination could not threaten the world’s number two pairing and tournament top seeds Sveta Peschke of the Czech Republic and Slovenian Katarina Srebotnik.

They started well enough, breaking Srebotnik’s service in the opening game. That was their only break of the match.

Arvidsson immediately lost her serve, then Erakovic conceded hers and their rivals served out for the first set.

The second was all one-way traffic, with Peschke and Srebotnik ruthlessly breaking three times to sweep their opponents and seal victory in just 51 minutes.

“We’re disappointed we lost, but they were really tough,” reflected Erakovic. “In the first set, I thought we were pretty decent, but they got better and better as the match went along.

“They were moving forward and attacking aggressively, especially Kveta at the net … I just felt I couldn’t get in there.

“We really haven’t played much together and this was a whole new level of doubles playv for us today.”

Erakovic will now wait to learn if she and regular partner Tamarine Tanasugarn of Thailand can gain direct entry to the Australian Open field, while a singles wild card is also a remote possibility.

But she and Arvidsson are already comparing schedules for the rest of the year to find further opportunities together.