It's win No 37 for Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis at Ladies Trophy

The duo notch up their 37th win on the trot yesterday with a 7-5, 7-5 win over Jelena Ostapenko and Evgeniya Rodina; 'SanTina' are now just seven wins away from equaling the all-time record of 44

St Petersburg (Russia): Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis notched up their 37th win on the trot yesterday with a 7-5, 7-5 win over Jelena Ostapenko (Latvia) and Evgeniya Rodina (Russia) in Ladies Trophy first round at Saint Petersburg.

Sania Mirza (right) & Martina Hingis at the Australian Open. Pic: AP/PTI

The World NO 1 doubles pair are now just seven victories away from equaling the all-time record of 44 set by Jana Novotna and Helena Sukova in 1990.

The top seeds struggled holding their service games, but the experienced pair took just under one-and-half-hour to wrap up the match.

Sania and Martina, known as 'SanTina' in tennis circles, have already captured eight titles in a row. They won five straight titles in 2015, starting from the US Open and before the Australian Open now.

They have won 11 WTA titles together. The Indo-Swiss pair will play Russians Daria Kasatkina and Elena Vesnina in the next round.

Bencic advances
Meanwhile, top-seed Belinda Bencic overcame issues with her serve to defeat Germany's Annika Beck 7-6 (3), 6-3 at the St Petersburg Ladies Trophy yesterday.

In a chaotic first set, Bencic was broken four times, recording six double faults, including one on break point that allowed Beck to serve for the set at 6-5.

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