New York, Sep 6: Lyudmyla Kichenok was supposed to get married this week to Jelena Ostapenko's coach. A run to the U.S. Open women's doubles championship forced a change of plans. Kichenok and Ostapenko won the title Friday for their first major as a team, beating Kristina Mladenovic and Zhang Shuai 6-4, 6-3. Kichenok said she and Stanislav Khmarskiy were supposed to have been married Wednesday, the day she and Ostapenko won their U.S. Open semifinal match. Maria Sharapova Attends Emma Navarro vs Aryna Sabalenka US Open 2024 Women’s Singles Semi-Final Match at Arthur Ashe Stadium (Watch Video).

“I think it's a good excuse to postpone it a bit,” Ostapenko said during the trophy ceremony. Kichenok and Ostapenko, the No. 7 seeds, began the season with a loss in the Australian Open final. They were too good in Flushing Meadows, where they didn't drop a set and won $750,000. It was the fifth title together overall for Ostapenko, a Latvian who won the 2017 French Open in singles, and Kichenok, who dedicated the victory to her home country of Ukraine. Aryna Sabalenka Thanks Fans for Cheering As She Marches On to US Open 2024 Final in Women's Singles, Says 'This Really Means a Lot' (Watch Video).

“They are fighting really hard for our freedom right now and I just hope I can give them some encouragement,” Kichenok said, “and my heart is with them.”

Kichenok and Ostapenko raced to a 4-1 lead before Mladenovic and Zhang fought back to tie it at 4-all. Ostapenko and Kichenok regained the lead when Ostapenko finally held serve during a 22-point game that lasted more than 12 minutes, and they won the set in the next game when Zhang double-faulted.

After falling behind 2-0 in the second, Kichenok and Ostapenko surged back as Arthur Ashe Stadium began to fill up with fans waiting for the first men's semifinal between No. 1 Jannik Sinner and No. 25 Jack Draper. Mladenovic and Zhang fought off three match points — the last when a video review confirmed that Kichenok had hit the ball twice on an attempted volley — before the champions wrapped it up on their next chance.

Mladenovic has won six Grand Slam doubles titles but fell to 0-3 in the U.S. Open final. “But I still like the place, it's OK,” she joked afterward. Zhang was looking for her second trophy in New York, having teamed with Sam Stosur for the 2021 title. She and Mladenovic shared $375,000. “For me the biggest motivation is I wanted to put our name on this trophy,” Zhang said. “But we will fight next time.”

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