ATP Finals results 2023: Joe Salisbury and Rajeev Ram defend doubles title

Britain's Joe Salisbury and American Rajeev Ram celebrate their victory at the ATP FinalsGetty Images

Joe Salisbury (left) and Rajeev Ram (right) won a historic third consecutive US Open title in September

Britain's Joe Salisbury and American Rajeev Ram completed the successful defence of their ATP Finals doubles title by beating Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos in straight sets.

The US Open champions were deserved 6-3 6-4 winners against Spaniard Granollers and Argentine Zeballos in Turin, Italy.

With a 10th successive win at the tournament, the pair became the first back-to-back champions since 2017.

"There is something very special about this place," Salisbury, 31, said.

"I feel so lucky to be playing here and to have the success we have had in Turin is incredible."

The Briton added: "We love playing here. When you have played well and had good matches [at a tournament] it brings back good feelings.

"We want to play our best at these big tournaments. I'm just really proud of the effort we have put in on and off the court."

After facing a break point in their opening service game, Salisbury and Ram struck the first blow of the contest when they took their third opportunity to seize a 3-1 advantage.

That proved enough for the British-American duo - the first team to reach three consecutive championship matches at the Finals since Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde in 1994 - who remained solid on serve to move within one set of victory.

Salisbury and 39-year-old Ram had come through three match tie-breaks to reach this year's final but were able to secure an efficient win over the Wimbledon runners-up on Sunday.

The sixth seeds took a commanding position with a break for 4-3 in the second set, but only after Granollers and Zeballos had managed to resist two of three break points.

And they completed a deserved victory, without facing a single break point, when Ram, who had struggled with an abdominal strain this week, served out the match after 69 minutes of play.

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