PARIS // Venus and Serena Williams have won their fourth consecutive grand slam doubles title and 12th overall, beating Katarina Srebotnik and Kveta Peschke 6-2, 6-3 yesterday at the French Open. The 73-minute victory by the top-seeded sisters makes them only the third women's doubles pair to win four major titles in a row. Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver did it in 1983-84, and Gigi Fernandez and Natasha Zvereva did it in 1992-93.
It was the sisters' second French Open doubles championship, and first since 1999, and they are now 12-0 in their grand slams doubles finals. When the new rankings are released next week, Serena will become only the sixth woman to hold the No 1 ranking in singles and doubles The doubles title might ease some of the sting from the Williams' exits in the singles. The No 1-ranked Serena lost in the quarter-finals, and No 2 Venus lost in the fourth round. The slow clay of Roland Garros has traditionally been the surface least suited to the game of the sisters, who have 19 grand slam singles titles between them but have reached the final in France only once - when Serena beat Venus in 2002.
* AP
