On July 13, at the Wimbledon Grand Slam tournament, 30-year-old Ukrainian tennis player Lyudmila Kichenok paired with six-time major champion Mate Pavić from Croatia won the mixed doubles final.
Kichenok and Pavić needed 2 hours and 7 minutes to outplay Xu and Vliegen after the unseeded pair saved a championship point in the second-set tiebreak and forced a third set.
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They regrouped in the final set to take the champions' trophy under the closed roof of Centre Court.
Kichenok and Pavić were close to victory in two sets, but failed to win the tie-breaker – 9-11.
The final result of the match was 6-4, 6-7 (9-11), 6-3.
Glory at SW19 🏆
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 13, 2023
Mate Pavic and Lyudmyla Kichenok are 2023 mixed doubles champions after defeating Xu/Vliegen, 6-4, 6-7(9), 6-3 👏#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/5c1BoZjF4Y
For the Ukrainian, this is the first final of the Grand Slam tournament, but for her partner it is 12th.
“I try to encourage the people in Ukraine and I hope this helps a little because they are fighting for their freedom,” Kichenok said to a huge ovation from the Centre Court crowd
“This feels amazing, I want to thank my partner for playing incredible in these two weeks.” Kichenok said.
“We both are just working hard on our game every day. We both are trying to play aggressively. On grass it works well. That’s the key. It worked for us in this tournament,” the Ukrainian tennis star said at the post-match press conference.
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