Pavlyuchenkova, Rublev win gold in mixed doubles final

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Andrey Rublev won Olympic mixed doubles tennis gold on Sunday, saving a match point against fellow Russians Elena Vesnina and Aslan Karatsev.

* Get DStv or Showmax for unrivalled access to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics *

They sealed victory in a deciding tie-break, edging out their stubborn opponents 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 13-11.

Pavlyuchenkova and Rublev, both in the top 20 in their singles rankings, are the first Russian mixed doubles champions. The event was only added back to the Olympics in 2012 after an 88-year absence.

Vesnina and Karatsev had knocked out men's world No 1 Novak Djokovic and Nina Stojanovic of Serbia in the semifinals, but could not strike gold.