Wang Xinyu (L) of China/Hsieh Su-Wei of Chinese Taipei hold together the Simonne Mathieu Cup after winning the women's doubles final against Leylah Fernandez of Canada/Taylor Townsend of the United States at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, June 11, 2023. (Xinhua/Gao Jing)
PARIS, June 11 (Xinhua) -- Wang Xinyu of China and Hsieh Su-wei of Chinese Taipei came from one set down to defeat No.10 seeds Leylah Fernandez of Canada and Taylor Townsend of the United States 1-6, 7-6(5), 6-1 to win the women's doubles title at the French Open on Sunday.
37-year-old Hsieh and 21-year-old Wang went through a stunning fortnight in Paris that saw the unseeded duo upset five seeded pairs to lift the Simonne Mathieu trophy.
"We didn't expect to play in the final before we came here, you know, we were a new team just paired for less than one month, so we told each other just to enjoy the match," said Hsieh.
Wang and Hsieh broke twice in the decider to surge to a demanding 5-1 lead before Hsieh was serving for the victory.
Despite missing the first championship point at 40-15, Hsieh fired a winner to convert on the second, securing her fifth Grand Slam doubles trophy, while Wang captured her first Grand Slam glory.
"It came so quick, we were thinking that the match did not end since we noticed our opponents may save the ball. But when we touch the trophy, the feeling was so real, so much happiness," Wang and Hsieh said of the final point.
Townsend and Fernandez have enjoyed immediate success since pairing up in Indian Wells. With their dual-lefty set-up and team chemistry, the team made their first final earlier this spring in Miami and followed up with a semifinal run in Madrid.
The duo went into the match strong, sweeping the first set 6-1 with a 71% winning rate on first serve and 100% on the second, in contrast to only 59% and 44% from Wang and Hsieh.
"Sometimes you lose first set, but second set, if you stay there, it's all the opportunities and then they will come," Hsieh said. "You just need to keep trying. It was keep trying, we do some cool shot, and then we cheering each other."
The fightback started from the second set, as Wang, who was more powerful from the baseline, improved her attacking and Hsieh raised her efficiency at the net.
"After the first set, Hsieh told me it was no big deal. The worst thing was to lose another set and at least we will go home as the runners-up," Wang said. "So we were not nervous or felt pressure in the match."
After prevailing in the tiebreak of the second set, Wang and Hsieh continued their momentum in the decider to hold a pivotal serve at 3-1, during which they saved four break points and expanded their lead to 4-1 after the game. After that, they never looked back.
As a doubles pair, Hsieh and Wang were playing in just their second event. ■
