Pascual, Suarez win third straight doubles title

NEW YORK (AP) -- Virginia Ruano Pascual and Paola Suarez won their third straight U.S. Open doubles title by beating singles champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and Elena Likhovtseva 6-4, 7-5 Sunday.

Ruano Pascual, of Spain, and Suarez, of Argentina, won three Grand Slam doubles championships this year, raising their career total to seven. They've played in 10 of the past 11 major finals; the only blip was a loss to Cara Black and Rennae Stubbs in this year's Wimbledon semifinals.

Serving for the match at 5-4, Suarez double-faulted to love-40, then sailed a shot long to get broken to 5-all. But Likhovtseva was broken at love right back, and Ruano Pascual served it out.

It's the first time in the Open era, which began in 1968, that a pair won three straight women's doubles titles at the U.S. Open. Last year, Ruano Pascual and Suarez beat Kuznetsova and Martina Navratilova for the title. In 2002, they defeated Elena Dementieva and Janette Husarova.

Kuznetsova beat Dementieva 6-3, 7-5 Saturday night in an all-Russian final to win her first major singles title.