ACAPULCO, Mexico - Victoria Azarenka is a WTA title-winner again - alongside Zheng Saisai in Acapulco.

The unseeded duo knocked off No.3 seeds Guiliana Olmos of Mexico and American Desirae Krawczyk, 6-1, 6-2, to win the doubles crown at the Abierto Mexicano TELCEL presentado por HSBC on Saturday.

"It was a last minute call, but it turned out to be a pretty great week," Azarenka said.

"This whole week has been quite a ride, so I'm happy to be standing here with a trophy. It's my first title since being a mom, so it's quite special."

The title is the Belarusian's first since giving birth to son Leo in December of 2016.

"We played quite well today, both of us," Zheng said after the match. "We took the opportunities and we played pretty aggressive.

"It's a good week for me especially to win a doubles title with Azarenka, who is a world class player. She taught me a lot and I learned a lot from her, so I thank her a lot for playing with me."

See it: Ascending in Acapulco: The best photos from Mexico

Azarenka, a two-time Australian Open champion in singles, had previously shown doubles prowess in her career.

The Belarusian won the gold medal in mixed doubles at the London Olympics alongside Max Miryni in 2012, won two other Grand Slam titles in mixed, and reached three Grand Slam doubles finals.

The 29-year-old was contesting her first doubles final in eight years, and first final of any kind since winning the Miami Open in 2016 - having pulled off the "Sunshine Double" shortly before announcing her pregnancy.


Azarenka and Zheng had previously knocked off No.4 seeds Sabrina Santamaria and Alexa Guarachi in the first round, and also came from a set down in their second round and quarterfinal matches against Laura Siegemund and Johanna Konta, and Sharon Fichman and Maria Sanchez, respectively. 

The pair teamed up for the first time this week in Mexico, which according to Zheng, came about just by chance.

"We just signed in, and I was so excited to play with her," she said. "She was someone I looked up to in the junior, when I started to play tennis, so it was amazing to play with her."

The title is Zheng's fourth career doubles title, and first in four years as well. 

She added: "It was quite nice, because people were watching in a full stadium, and gave both teams [support]. It was exciting, and we played a good match."

The duo also appeared in the singles draw in Acapulco and both reached the quarterfinals. Azarenka fell to Sofia Kenin in the last eight, while Zheng was defeated by Bianca Andreescu.