French Open: Ena Shibahara, Wesley Koolhof win mixed doubles title in historic final
Jun 02, 2022
Paris [France], June 2 : On a historical day for Japan and Norway, the mix double pair Ena Shibahara and Wesley Koolhof clinched the French Open 2022 mix double title on Thursday, defeating Ulrikke Eikeri and Joren Vliegen in a stunning clash.
The duo beat Norway's Ulrikke Eikeri and Joran Vliegen of Belgium 7-6(5), 6-2 to win the French Open mixed doubles final.
Shibahara and Koolhof earned the early advantage in the fourth game, breaking for a 3-1 lead on an aggressive Shibahara poach at the net. The No.2 seeds consolidated with a flourish, as Koolhof nailed a volley and celebrated with a roar.
In the first set, Eikeri and Vliegen built a 5-2 lead in the tiebreak, but a furious comeback from Shibahara and Koolhof resulted in five consecutive points to take the tiebreak 7-5.
The second set began like the first, But it took Shibahara and Koolhof one hour and 29 minutes to wrap up the game with a 7-6 (5), 6-2 win in the match.
Shibahara, ranked No.8 in doubles, wins her first major title and becomes the first Japanese player in 25 years to win the mixed doubles championship in Paris.
"It was our first time playing together and I'm so thankful you asked me to play, it was so much fun," Shibahara said on court.
"When I first started playing tennis, I have a family of five and we were playing mixed doubles. This was the first thing I played, so this is very special for me to win the mixed doubles at a Grand Slam. This was just a dream come true this week," she added.
"Ena, thanks for saying yes to my request. Loved playing with you and hope we'll play more in the future," Koolhof said.
The final was a historic day for Norway as well. By making her first major final in her first try at mixed doubles, Ulrikke Eikeri became Norway's first Slam finalist in the Open Era.
