WTT Washington Kastles

Kastles Make History at French Open

Published on June 8, 2016 under World TeamTennis (WTT)
Washington Kastles News Release


Kastles fans have long since known about the prowess of Leander Paes and Martina Hingis as a mixed doubles team. Ever since Hingis joined the Kastles in 2013, there has been nothing closer to a sure thing in World TeamTennis than a defeat at the hands of the duo in the mixed doubles set of a Kastles match. The Kastles superstars decided to bring their partnership to the rest of the tour on the plane in route to the 2014 WTT Finals in August of that year. What has resulted from that plane trip has been historic: five of the last seven major titles and the third Mixed Doubles Grand Slam in history were won by the partnership that originated right here in DC.

Hingis and Paes arrived at the 2016 French Open looking to fill the lone hole on their otherwise spotless resumes. The only doubles title the duo lacked individually and as a team was the Mixed Doubles trophy at Roland Garros. Red clay had already proven to be the toughest surface for the longtime Kastles teammates: Roland Garros was the only major the duo fell short at during a record setting 2015, where they captured three of the four majors. In addition to the red clay, another obstacle was thrown in their way when rain delays forced matches to be postponed. This set up a historic day where Hingis and Paes played their quarterfinal and semifinal matches within hours of each other.

Despite all the setbacks, the duo remained focused, dismissing two straight ranked opponents in route to the final. The quarterfinal match saw them easily defeat No. 5 seeds Elena Vesnina and Bruno Soares 6-4, 6-3. Only hours later, they followed that performance up with a tough, 6-3, 3-6, 10-7 victory over No. 6 seeds Andrea Hlavackova and Edouard Roger-Vasselin.

A hectic Thursday set up an epic final against familiar faces Sania Mirza and Ivan Dodig. Hingis and Mirza were, of course, familiar with each other after dominating the Women's Doubles tour together since the beginning of 2015. The feared "Santina" have captured four of the last six major titles, as Hingis and Mirza rose to the top of the doubles rankings. Mirza and Paes were also quite accustomed to each other, as they teamed up to represent India during the 2012 Olympic Games and could potentially team up again for the 2016 Games in Rio.

Both teams held serve throughout a tense first set until Dodig and Mirza broke Paes in the eighth game of the match to snatch the set away 6-4. Hingis and Paes came out firing in the second set, breaking Dodig to take a 2-1 lead. The serve from Hingis was particularly on point, as she pulled out several clutch games while facing pressure from Dodig and Mirza. The duo was forced to dig deep in the second set however, when Dodig and Mirza once again broke Paes to even the score at 3-3. A frustrated Paes switched racquets, which paid off the next game when the Kastles veterans got the break right back off Mirza and solidified the break with another clutch service hold from Hingis. Paes got his grove back as he served out the second set to force a match tiebreaker.

Despite the mental and physical strain of playing three matches in two days, both teams were able to raise their games yet again in the tiebreak. The back-and-forth affair included several clutch points on both sides.

Hingis and Paes grabbed an early lead, but Dodig and Mirza battled back to 5-6 with Dodig serving. Hingis once again came up big, hitting two huge shots, including a fierce exchange with Mirza to set up a Paes slam, grabbing an 8-6 lead and prompting Paes to sprint around the court with his arms raised in triumph. Another low, dipping shot from Hingis left Dodig swinging at air and gave the duo match point. Hingis and Paes closed the match two points later, winning the match in dramatic fashion 4-6, 6-4, 10-8.

Leander Peas became just the third man to complete the Career Grand Slam in Men's Doubles and Mixed Doubles, joining Australians Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde. While Marina Hingis became just the fourth woman to win the Career Grand Slam in Women's Doubles and Mixed Doubles, joining Margaret Smith, Doris Hart and Martina Navratilova. The duo also became the first Mixed Doubles team in the open era to complete the Career Grand Slam together. Overall, the victory at Roland Garros was Martina Hingis' 22nd major title and was major number 18 for Leander Paes.

The Bryan Brothers, who were going for an unprecedented 17th major title also made a strong run in Paris. The greatest men's doubles team of all time overcame not only rain delays, but also faced down a match point in their third round match against Radek Stepanek and Nenad Zimonjic in route to making the finals. 2016 marked the tenth time the brothers made the semifinals at Roland Garros, which is the second major tournament where they've made ten semifinal appearances (Wimbledon is the other).

In addition to coming back against Stepanek and Zimonjic in the third round, the Bryans also took out Kastles teammate Leander Paes (who was making his first major quarterfinal appearance this year) and his partner Marcin Matkowski. The Bryans won a tense tiebreaker at 14-12 to win the first set, in route to winning 7-6, 6-3.

The duo faced the gritty Spaniard duo of Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez (no relation) in a hard-fought final. Mike Bryan was broken in the first game of the match, allowing Lopez and Lopez to take the set 6-4. The brothers dug deep in the second set. After getting to a tiebreaker, the duo grabbed a 4-1 lead and eventually held on to force a third set. The brothers finally succumbed in the third set after some tremendous play from both teams. The French Open final was the fourth tournament final of the clay season for the brothers. You can watch highlights from the final on the ATP website here.

Madison Brengle ended one of the most successful clay seasons of her career with her best result ever in a major doubles draw, making the third round with partner Tatjana Maria. The duo started their run by knocking off No. 13 seeds Arantxa Santonja and Anabel Garrigues in the first round 6-2, 6-3.

The victory set up a second round grudge match against French favorite Alize Cornet and Magda Linette. Cornet and Maria's second round singles match had ended in controversy the day before, with Cornet defeating Maria in a tense third set after Cornet took a medical timeout, the legitimacy of which was called into question after the match. Brengle and Maria took the opportunity to serve up some revenge, crushing Cornet and Linette in the third set to win 6-4, 2-6, 6-1.

Brengle and Linette's run came to an end in the third round against the No. 3 seeds Hao-Ching Chan and Yung-Jan Chan of Taiwan. Despite the loss, the run capped a very successful clay court season for Brengle.

Another World TeamTennis player made a big splash in Paris, as Shelby Rogers of the San Diego Aviators reached the quarterfinals of the singles draw. Ranked No. 106 going into the tournament, Rogers upset No. 25 seed Irina-Camelia Begu, No. 17 seed Karolina Pliskova, and No. 10 seed and two-time Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova in route to her best ever result in a major. A Kastles sub in 2014, Rogers will return to DC with the Aviators to take on the Kastles on August 10th.

Hingis, Paes Return to Lead the Kastles

Martina Hingis and Leander Paes will be returning to the place where their legendary partnership began this summer, as they once again lead the Kastles in their quest for a sixth straight King Trophy! Along with the Bryan Brothers, Mardy Fish, Sam Querrey, Anastasia Rodionova and Madison Brengle, the record-setting duo will be in DC as the Kastles take on some the best players in the world. With tickets as low as $12, seats are sure to go fast. So don't wait to secure the best seats in the house!

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World TeamTennis Stories from June 8, 2016


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