MELBOURNE, Jan 26: It was to be the Glam Slam, the squealer versus the squeaker. Instead, Saturday’s Australian Open women’s final was a battle of brinkmanship and jangling nerves. Ana Ivanovic blinked first and Maria Sharapova was the champion.

Russia’s tennis Tsarina beat Ivanovic 7-5, 6-3 to win her third grand slam title and atone for last year’s loss in the final to Serena Williams.

It was an emphatic title – she won the crown without losing a set in seven matches. It took 91 minutes on a centre court cauldron for Sharapova to finish off the Serb.

When she did so, she sank to her knees as her opponent’s forehand sailed wide on matchpoint, looking skywards as tears filled her green eyes.

Brilliant in a white fringed dress, her blonde pony-tail pulled behind a white visor, Sharapova fairly shimmered on Rod Laver Arena.

Ivanovic’s shoes still squeaked when she returned and Sharapova certainly shrieked as play got underway.The Russian, who struggled with injury throughout 2007, won the toss and elected to receive but Ivanovic stared her down and held comfortably.

Sharapova’s serve was something else, however. Powerful and well-directed, she dominated on her own delivery.

She got the breakthrough in the fifth game when she slammed a backhand winner to move 3-2 ahead. That winner was accompanied by the loudest shriek of the match – so loud a baby in the stands started crying.

It was not until the eighth game of the match that Sharapova lost even a point on her serve, but having achieved that mini breakthrough Ivanovic’s confidence grew and she broke thanks to two double faults from the Russian.

Three games later Sharapova nosed ahead again, though, which heralded more fist-pumping and she duly served out to love to clinch the set 7-5 as the mercury reached 34 degrees Celsius.

Melbourne’s Serb population was in fine voice but could do little to raise their favourite.

Sharapova grabbed a break in the seventh game of the second set and smelt blood. Not even a piece of advertiser’s music accidentally blaring from an on-court speaker could put her off as she comfortably held serve for a 5-3 lead.

Ivanovic’s head dropped and she quickly fell behind 0-40 to hand the Russian three championship points.

Ivanovic saved the first two but victory was Sharapova’s when the Serb’s forehand flew wide.

Meanwhile, Israel’s Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram won their first Grand Slam title with a 7-5, 7-6 victory over Frenchmen Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra in the Australian Open men’s doubles final.

They became the first Israeli pair to win a grand slam title. Compatriot Shahar Peer and her partner Victoria Azarenka of Belarus lost in the women’s doubles final on Friday to Ukraine’s Alona and Kateryna Bondarenko.

The match, which followed the women’s singles final, was delayed during the first set when a rain downpour over the uncovered Rod Laver Arena made it unplayable with Erlich and Ram leading 4-2.

Tournament staff mopped up the rain with towels and the roof was closed before they returned about 30 minutes later. Erlich and Ram had a comfortable lead when they restarted but the French Wimbledon champions fought back before the Israelis took the first set.

They had the opportunity to take a 5-3 lead in the second, holding two break points, but the French pair rallied to take a 6-5 lead before Erlich and Ram forced the tiebreak.

The Israeli duo then came back from 3-1 down in the tiebreak to secure the next four points and win it 7-4.

—Reuters