New Zealand's tennis prodigy dujour Marina Erakovic won her second Grand Slam junior doubles title last night at the Australian Open.
Paired with Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, the second seeds swept to a crushing 6-0, 6-2 victory in 43 minutes over sixth seeds Nicola Frankova and Agnes Szavay.
Earlier Erakovic,16, was knocked out by her 15-year-old doubles partner 6-1, 6-3 in the singles quarter-final to equal her performance at last year's US Open.
Erakovic was delighted to add the Australian Open title to her US Open victory. "A Grand Slam is a Grand Slam," she said. "It's a great feeling."
She was solid throughout the match, committing few errors and was especially ruthless at the net.
It caps off a memorable month for Erakovic, who made the second round of the ASB Classic in her first professional tournament.
After clinching victory, she waved to a smattering of vocal Kiwi fans in the Margaret Court Arena, where she was presented with a platter and a stuffed kangaroo.
Her mother and older sister also saluted her triumph.
