Italian job! Errani and Vavassori bag $1m

Swiatek and Ruud outsmarted by pair

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Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori retained their US Open mixed doubles title on Wednesday, beating Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud to claim the US$1 million top prize in the new-look competition that kicked off action at the last Grand Slam of the year.

The Italians capped two days of intense work in the 16-team event with a 6-3, 5-7, 10-6 victory over Swiatek and Ruud — who were among a slew of singles stars drawn not only by the big purse but also by the chance to contest mixed doubles before singles action begins on Sunday.

Poland's Swiatek, a six-time Grand Slam champion ranked second in the world, battled through a two-hour tussle with Jasmine Paolini to win the Cincinnati Open on Monday then hotfooted it to New York to team up with Norway's Ruud in the revamped competition.