The German-French doubles pair defeated Desirae Krawczyk and Neal Skupski, 6-4, 7-5, on Thursday. PARIS—Laura Siegemund initially didn’t have mixed doubles in her Roland Garros program this year. Edouard Roger-Vasselin’s original plans blew up in proverbial smoke.
When the German received a text message out of the blue from Roger-Vasselin, a player she had always wanted to share the court with, an addendum was made to her Paris itinerary.
“Many times I wanted to play really bad with him, and he was set already or some other situation. Then I was, like, ‘okay, I cannot say no to this,’” Siegemund reflected with press.
Taking up the Frenchman’s offer two hours before the entry deadline, the decision paid off with the sweetest ending possible Thursday: a Grand Slam trophy.
The second-seeded Siegemund and Roger-Vasselin defeated fourth seeds Desirae Krawczyk and Neal Skupski, 6-4, 7-5, on Court Philippe Chatrier.
While Skupski was broken in the opening game of the contest, he and Krawczyk had plenty of opportunities to wipe away the deficit. Standing their ground, Siegemund and Roger-Vasselin staved off seven break points en route to clinching the first set.
Then, down 2-4 in the second set, the American-British tandem held from 30-40 on Krawczyk’s serve. Four consecutive breaks followed, with Roger-Vasselin unable to serve out the contest after holding championship point at 40-40.
That disappointment didn’t last long, as the home favorite and his partner seized eight of the final 10 points to triumph on their team debut.
“Really nice to win at home. It’s the biggest tournament for me, so having the trophy here ten years after I won in doubles here, it’s quite special,” said Roger-Vasselin.
“I’m really happy that I decided to say yes,” laughed Siegemund.
“It’s just great to have someone who can play so many different things and tactics, and I really enjoyed that.”
Roger-Vasselin celebrated his maiden mixed doubles crown, while Siegemund added to her 2016 US Open title run with Mate Pavic.
Krawczyk and Skupski, two-time Wimbledon champions, finished runner-up for the second consecutive major.
