The Chinese mainland duo Li Xiaohui and Wang Ziying finished as runners-up in the wheelchair women's doubles final at the French Open in Paris on Friday. Facing Japan's Yui Kamiji and South Africa's Kgothatso Montjane at Roland Garros, Li and Wang dropped the match 4-6, 7-5, 10-7 in a thrilling showdown.
Earlier this year, the pair made history by capturing the Chinese mainland's first Grand Slam wheelchair doubles title at the Australian Open. They started strong in Paris with a 6-4 opening set, but Kamiji and Montjane fought back in the second, exploiting the increasing mistakes by their opponents to take the set 7-5.
In the championship tie-breaker, the regular Roland Garros finalists delivered a strong performance, clinching the final set 10-7 to secure their second title in the French capital after winning in 2023.
"It's known that failure is the mother of success," said Wang Ziying after the match. "We have room to improve, and we will learn from this experience. Although we lost the final, we walk away with valuable lessons."
Li Xiaohui added, "We have had many experiences on the way to the finals at the Australian Open and French Open. We'll train hard and aim for an even stronger performance at upcoming competitions."
Earlier in the tournament, Li Xiaohui also faced Kamiji in the women's singles semifinal. The Japanese star won 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-4 and will meet Aniek van Koot of the Netherlands in the final.
Reference(s):
Chinese duo Li & Wang finish wheelchair runners-up at French Open
cgtn.com
