First-time partners Fritz/Khachanov advance to Queen's Club doubles final
After knocking out top seeds Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden on Friday at the cinch Championships, Taylor Fritz and Karen Khachanov took out third seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic on Saturday to reach the final in their first event as a pair.
They followed a 7-6(1), 7-6(3) win against Bopanna/Ebden with a 4-6, 6-3, 12-10 victory in the semi-finals, saving a match point at 8/9 in the Match Tie-break. Despite being broken for the first time in the tournament in the opening set against Arevalo/Pavic, the fan-favourite duo responded quickly before capping their comeback in dramatic fashion.
Becoming Kings at Queens 👑
This duo is into the final, but they need your help choosing a nickname 🔥👇@QueensTennis | #CinchChampionships pic.twitter.com/OPJmh94TB4
— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 22, 2024
Fritz is through to the Queen’s Club final for the second straight year after a runner-up finish with Jiri Lehecka in 2023. He will seek his first tour-level doubles crown in his fourth final. Khachanov has also reached three previous tour-level doubles finals, all at the ATP Masters 1000 level. He won Madrid in 2023 with Andrey Rublev.
The eighth seeds will meet either fourth seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek or seventh seeds Neal Skupski and Michael Venus in Sunday’s final.
[ATP APP]Puetz/Krawietz reach Halle final on home soil
Germans Tim Puetz and Kevin Krawietz also won a Match Tie-break to advance to the final at the Terra Wortmann Open. The home hopes beat Frenchmen Fabien Reboul and Sadio Doumbia 6-1, 4-6, 10-5 on Saturday to set up a final showdown against top-seeded Italians Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori.
<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/06/22/16/38/puetz-krawietz-halle-2024-sf.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Tim Puetz, Kevin Krawietz” />
Photo credit: Terra Wortmann Open/Mathias Schulz.
Puetz/Krawietz converted on three of four break points in the semi-finals, according to Infosys ATP Stats. They have lost just one set in three matches en route to the final.
Brisbane finalists in January, the Germans are seeking their first title together in 2024. Their lone trophy triumph as a duo came last year on home soil in Hamburg.
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