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Melbourne - Daniel Nestor of Canada and Kristina Mladenovic of France combined to win the Australian Open mixed doubles title with a 6-3, 6-2 win Sunday over sixth-seeded Sania Mirza of India and Horia Tecau of Romania.
Nestor and Mladenovic, who won the Wimbledon mixed doubles title last year, fended off all five break points they faced and broke the Mirza-Tecau combination four times in the 58-minute match.
"Kiki, she's the best mixed doubles player. She really helps me out on court," the 41-year-old Nestor said. "I actually have to cover less of the court, which is perfect for me, because I'm so old. "
Nestor has won all four majors in men's doubles. This was his third Australian Open mixed doubles title his victory at Melbourne Park in 2007 and 2011.
During the match, the on-court microphone picked up Nestor saying he'd now like to collect a Grand Slam of mixed doubles titles with Mladenovic. He later said he was only half joking.
"I always tell my friends my best chance of winning Grand Slams nowadays are in mixed. But obviously I'd still like to win men's doubles titles, too," Nestor said. "You know, I think I have a good partner in that, too. I just think this is the best chance, but I'll keep playing both and hopefully good will come out of it."
Nestor has won a total of 12 Grand Slam doubles titles, eight mens and four in the mixed doubles — three of which were in Melbourne.
