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Leander, Mahesh lose Grand Slam final

The fanatics and the meatballs cheered Patrick Rafter and Jonas Bjorkman to a men's doubles title today at the Australian Open.

The popular fifth-seeded pair upset tournament top seeds Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7 (10-12), 6-4.

It was a major consolation for Rafter, twice a US Open singles champion who has never tasted Grand Slam success in front of his home public.

The Swedish-Aussie combination was barracked and cheered almost constantly by a group of Aussie supporters, the fanatics, noted for their matching T-shirts and occasional trumpet playing interludes in the stands.

Alongside them were the blue-and-yellow painted Swedes -- dubbed the meatballs after the Swedish dish. While Rafter had never done well at home, the victory was the second in a row for Bjorkman, who won the trophy in 1998 with now-retired Dutchman Jacob Eltingh.

Bhupathi and Paes fought off an early end in the fourth set as Bjorkman and Rafter could not come good on match point during the tie-breaker. The marathon went into a fifth set, where the Aussie- Swedish pair triumphed when Rafter slammed over a winning instinct volley as his side broke Paes for the match.

''We'd like to thank our family and friends for coming out and supporting us,'' said Paes, the Olympic bronze medallist in singles at the Atlanta Games. Rafter and Bjorkman spent Friday relaxing on the golf course, then came out and played top-notch doubles a day later.

''I didn't think Jonas could put up with me at the end of last year when I put in a couple of very ordinary performances,'' said the widely popular Rafter. ''Thanks for sticking with me."

''Commiserations to Leander and Mahesh, you'll win a Grand Slam soon, you'll be there,'' Rafter said, thrilled to finally lift a trophy -- any trophy -- at home. ''This is the first time I've been up in front of you guys,'' he said to massive cheering on centre court.

Davis Cup champion Bjorkman, who disappointingly lost in the singles first round last week, said he was glad he played the team game. ''Melbourne is the best place for me to play doubles,'' said the two-time trophy-holder. ''It's really special to win again. I'm glad the Swedish supporters stayed all week, I promise not to let you down in singles like that next year.''

UNI