TENNIS/Taiwan's tennis star Hsieh falls short in Dubai women's doubles final

Taipei, Feb. 23 (CNA) Taiwanese tennis veteran Hsieh Su-wei (謝淑薇) and her Latvian partner Jelena Ostapenko came up just short in the women's doubles final at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Saturday, falling 6-7(5), 4-6 to top-seeded Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend.

The loss marked Hsieh's second runner-up finish of the season against the Czech-American duo, following their intense showdown in last month's Australian Open final.

Hsieh and Ostapenko had a strong start in Saturday's match, leading 6-5 in the opening set and holding three set points. However, they were unable to convert their chances, allowing their opponents to force a tiebreak, which they lost 5-7.

Despite showing resilience in the second set and narrowing a 2-5 deficit to 4-5, Hsieh and Ostapenko were unable to break their opponents' serve again, conceding the championship in straight sets.