Britain’s Henry Patten claimed his second grand slam doubles title alongside his Finnish partner, Harri Heliövaara, in a late-night epic in Melbourne.
The pair did not walk out on Rod Laver Arena until 10.30pm after a lengthy women’s singles final between Madison Keys Aryna Sabalenka. It took until past midnight for the first set against the Italian third seeds, Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori, to conclude.
They were edged out in a 34-point tie-break after having 10 set points but put it behind them to clinch a 6-7 (16), 7-6, (5) 6-3 victory just before 1.45am.
It cements Patten and Heliövaara as one of the best pairs in the world after winning their maiden slam title at Wimbledon last summer.
“What an evening,” said Patten. “I want to thank everybody who stayed out here and watched us play. You guys are a little bit crazy but I love you for it.”
There was slam glory for another Briton as Alfie Hewett finally got the better of Tokito Oda. Hewett likened his rivalry with that of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and was unable to hold back tears after defeating the Japanese 18-year-old 6-4, 6-4 in the men’s wheelchair final to win his 10th grand slam singles title.
Since beating the teenager in the final in Melbourne two years ago, Hewett had lost to Oda in three slam finals and the battle for the Paralympic gold medal in Paris last summer. His dedication to ending the losing run led him to bring a left-handed hitting partner to Melbourne Park purely to prepare for Oda and it paid off.
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“I didn’t expect me to start blubbering on the court, but I’m probably harbouring a few feelings from the last couple of matches that we’ve played,” said Hewett, who won a sixth consecutive doubles title in Melbourne on Friday with Gordon Reid. “It does knock you deep down, your belief and confidence in the big moments. For me to do it today and prove to myself more than anyone that I can rise to the occasion against a player like him, it was very overwhelming.”
“You have to be challenged. You have to be pushed to your limits. We have a good relationship, and I’m glad that he’s pushing me and I’m sure I’ll be pushing him and he will say the exact same. It’s a bit of a Federer-Nadal situation – wheelchair version.”
