CINCINNATI, Ohio — When Alycia Parks received an impromptu text from Taylor Townsend asking if she would participate in doubles at the Western & Southern Open, she was stunned.
“When he texted me, I was down,” Parks told WTA Insider. “Let’s sign up. I’ll drop who I signed.”
“I always wanted to play with Taylor. First game, I was tight. I was like, Taylor is the doubles specialist and I tight get out of here.”
Parks and Townsend engineer back to win in Cincinnati
Townsend’s world-class net game and Parks’ powerful serve and groundstroke, the American duo tore through an extremely difficult draw to win their first tournament together. Unseeded for the week, Parks and Townsend rattled off four straight wins against Top 5 seeds to claim their first WTA 1000 title.
“From our first game, my hitting partner said, ‘Watch them win the tournament’,” Townsend said. “I know the type of players I play well and it’s someone who has a good serve and has a lot of weapons from the baseline that can put me in the net.
“So from the beginning we knew that our games complemented each other very well. We got along well off the court and on the court.
Parks said he’s never had a doubles partner as chatty as Townsend. He loved it.
“He taught me the changes and I never had that,” Parks said. “So for me to understand that from him, that’s what I’ll bring to my doubles. I hope we can play again.”
Townsend is one of the best doubles players in the game, but the 27-year-old comes into the week still chasing a major title. She has already bagged two titles this season with two different partners, but Townsend and Leylah Fernandez, her regular partner, suffered two tough losses in the finals of Miami and Roland Garros.
Townsend said those experiences helped him in Cincinnati, where he felt he handled the occasion of a grand final better than ever. His nerves were no different, but this time he found a way to turn the game around.
“It’s great knowing that I can play anyone and knowing that I can win no matter who I’m with and who’s on the other side of the net, because Alycia and I have such a tough draw,” Townsend said. . “It doesn’t matter who’s on the other side of the net.
“I really know and I believe that I have what it takes to win these types of tournaments. I know that everyone sees it, but it’s always good to get the trophy to put the stamp on it .”