Wimbledon 2023: Neal Skupski and Wesley Koolhof are crowned men’s doubles champions
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Neal Skupski and Wesley Koolhof have been crowned the 2023 Wimbledon men’s doubles champions following an emphatic 6-4, 6-4 victory over Horacio Zeballos and Marcel Granollers.
The British, Dutch duo can breathe a sigh of relief now they have finally got their hands on a long-awaited maiden Grand Slam trophy together, in what was a doubles masterclass on Centre Court on Saturday afternoon.
Since coming together 18 months ago the British, Dutch duo have been a formidable force on the doubles tour, racking up an astounding eight tour-level titles, including three Master’s 1000 trophies, but the historic Wimbledon trophy sits at the very top of their rapidly expanding collection.
Road to the Wimbledon title
- First round: vs Daniel Altmaier (GER, world No.409) & Aslan Karatsev (world No.570) 6-3, 7-5
- Second round: vs Rinky Hijikata (AUS, world No.37) & Jason Kubler (AUS, world No.31) 7-6(3), 6-2
- Third round: vs Max Purcell (AUS, world No.56) & Jordan Thompson (AUS, world No.169) 6-3, 7-6(3)
- Quarter-final: vs Ariel Behar (URY, world No.68) & Adam Pavlasek (CZE, world No.74) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
- Semi-final: vs Rohan Bopanna (IND, world No.12) & Matthew Ebden (AUS, world No.16) (seeded No.6) 7-5, 6-4
- Final: vs Marcel Granollers (ESP, world No.28) & Horacio Zeballos (ARG, world No.26) 6-4, 6-4
Speaking on-court with their arms wrapped firmly around the silverware, Koolhof highlighted just how special the occasion felt: “It started when the doors opened, I think it was a very special moment already and one and a half hours later, to be holding this beauty (the trophy) is very very special.”
Having lifted back-to-back mixed doubles titles in 2021 and 2022, Skupski’s first men’s doubles Slam at Wimbledon makes him the first British man to win both the men’s and mixed doubles titles in SW19 since Leslie Godfree in 1926 – an achievement that emulates his incredible career so far.
“I don’t know what to say” Skupski grinned. “I grew up watching this amazing Championships on TV, starting off a young boy at Palmerston Tennis Club in Liverpool with my dad and then growing up with my brother, who has been very influential in my career growing up.
“Me and Wesley came together 18 months ago and this year one of our goals was to win a Grand Slam and now we’ve done it, it feels very special.”
The top seeds looked to hit the ground running from the off – injecting power and precision into every shot before finding the breakthrough at 3-3. With the British, Dutch duo being gifted a break point opportunity, they piled the pressure onto Granollers serve – eventually securing the break when the Argentine plummeted a second serve long. A flawless first set was rounded off with a hold to love from Koolhof to give them the advantage in the final showdown.
From there, the joint world No.2’s were firing on all cylinders – finding the only break at 2-2 in the second set as Koolhof crushed a smash at the net to put the pair within touching distance of the silverware.
With a wealth of experience under his belt from playing at the top of the game, Skupski shook off the nerves as he stepped up to serve it out for the championship. In a display of true professionalism, the Brit closed out the biggest win of his career with a hold to love before collapsing to the floor in elation in front of a home crowd.
This will no doubt be the first of many Grand Slam titles for the British, Dutch duo, who will return to the top of the ATP rankings as joint world No.1's on Monday, “We have a few more tournaments to go this year – US Open and Nitto ATP Finals in Turin is obviously a goal" Koolhof added.
“I was very lucky to win it here in London in 2020 so I will do my best to get Neal on board and have that one as well in a few months’ time.”
