Italy’s Sara Errani completed a career Golden Slam by winning Olympic gold in the women’s doubles tennis event with Jasmine Paolini.
The pair defeated Russia’s Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider, who were competing as Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN), with a score of 2-6, 6-1, 10-8 on Court Philippe-Chatrier at Roland Garros on Sunday.
It was Italy’s first Olympic tennis gold in its history, with Errani and Paolini following up Lorenzo Musetti’s bronze in men’s singles, which was the country’s first Olympic tennis medal for 100 years.
Errani, who won the French and US Opens in 2012, the Australian Open in 2013, and Wimbledon in 2014 — all with partner Roberta Vinci — had to wait 10 years to finally add Olympic gold to her resume.
Playing alongside Paolini, who has had a breakout season by reaching the French Open and Wimbledon singles finals in consecutive tournaments, the Italians clinched a thrilling 10-point match tiebreak. They even secured a point with an underarm serve, sparking a rally that lasted more than 15 shots.
It was a fitting end to a final more competitive and tense than the scoreline in either of the first two sets suggested, with Errani the key throughout, a brick wall at the net against the considerable power of Andreeva and Shnaider.
Errani completed her Golden Slam on the same day and at the same age as Novak Djokovic, with both players achieving the milestone at the age of 37.
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(Thibaud Moritz/AFP via Getty Images)
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