Matthew Ebden/John Friends win gold at Paris Olympics | ATP Tour

Doubles

Ebden/Friends dig deep for gold in Paris Olympic closing

People Fritz/Paul ease to bronze medal

August 03, 2024

Matthew Ebden and John Friends pulled off a stirring comeback and fended off some Match Tie-break pressure on Saturday afternoon in Paris. Now, they’re Olympic champions.

The unseeded Australian pair defeated People Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram 6-7(6), 7-6(1), 10-8 within the gold-medal match. After recovering from a set and a break down, Ebden and Friends produced a few of their finest tennis of the groups’ maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head encounter to clinch victory and spark joyous celebrations on Court docket Philippe-Chatrier.

“It is trippy. It is greater than a dream. I did not even dream of profitable a gold medal rising up or no matter,” stated two-time Grand Slam champion Ebden. “The previous few years, I had nice success on the doubles court docket. It gave lots of perception and confidence coming in right here.”

Friends was requested in regards to the response of his two younger daughters, who have been within the crowd: “They are going to be speaking about this one till we’re 100.”

🇦🇺 AUSTRALIAN GOLD 🌟@mattebden and @johnwpeers come from a set all the way down to defeat Krajicek/Ram 6-7 7-6 10-8 and win GOLD in #Paris2024 #Olympics | #tennis pic.twitter.com/IWx0W0MHVQ

— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 3, 2024

Neither crew had dropped a set en path to the ultimate and the fourth-seeded Krajicek and Ram have been on monitor to finish an ideal week within the French capital after they led by a set and a break. But simply as that they had within the opening set, Ebden and Friends rallied from 2-4 to pressure a tie-break within the second. This time they received it, they usually then produced a masterful Match Tie-break show.

The Australians charged right into a 9/5 lead within the decider, however they have been made to sweat as Krajicek and Ram saved the primary three of their opponents’ 4 gold-medal factors. Ebden and Friends saved their cool to transform the fourth, nevertheless, and declare the gold medal in simply their fifth occasion as a crew.

With their two-hour, four-minute triumph, the 2 36-year-olds received Australia’s second gold medal in Olympic Tennis Occasion historical past. The No. 3 and No. 59 within the PIF ATP Doubles Rankings, respectively, Ebden and Friends be a part of ATP Tour greats Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde, who triumphed at Atlanta 1996, as Australian Olympic tennis champions.

“It’s an absolute honour anytime I get talked about in the identical breath as these two, they paved the best way for us,” stated Friends of Woodbridge and Woodforde. “They’ve at all times been there for us.”

Within the bronze-medal match, People Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul earned their spot on an Olympic podium for the primary time by overcoming Czech duo Tomas Machac and Adam Pavlasek 6-3, 6-4.

The facility of Prime 20 singles gamers Fritz and Paul proved decisive within the 70-minute match. The third seeds fired 23 winners and transformed three of 11 break factors they earned to make sure that the USA leaves Paris 2024 with two males’s tennis medals.

Taylor Fritz/Tommy Paul“>

_{^{Lengthy-time buddies Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul have fun after profitable bronze on the Paris Olympics. Photograph Credit score: Carl de Souza/AFP through Getty Pictures}}

Olympic debutant Fritz and his accomplice Paul have been contesting their second tour-level semi-final as a pair, having additionally reached that stage on the Queen’s Membership grass in 2022. After Krajicek and Ram earlier claimed silver, Fritz and Paul are the sixth American crew to win a males’s doubles medal for the reason that Olympic Tennis Occasion returned in 1988.