Delight for Italy as Errani and Paolini clinch first-ever gold
Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini have made history for Italy, winning the first-ever gold for their country in tennis with a gritty 2-6 6-1 10-7 victory over Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider in Sunday’s women’s doubles final.
The Italian pair tossed their rackets in the air before going over to their box to celebrate with their wider team including their Billie Jean King Cup captain Tathiana Garbin and men’s singles bronze medallist Lorenzo Musetti.
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What makes the victory all the more extraordinary is that Errani had asked Paolini to play doubles with her just over a year ago so that she could compete at the Olympics.
Fast forward just over 12 months and not only are the Italians one of the form pairs in the doubles world but they now have a gold medal.
“It feels great to have this medal round the neck," Paolini said after the match. "It’s something different. I think you feel the importance because it’s every four years and you play for your country."
The 28-year-old admitted that she didn't even like to play doubles and now she has a gold medal.
If it's special for Paolini then it's sensational for Errani.
The talk of the tennis town might have been centred on Novak Djokovic’s gold medal win against Carlos Alcaraz in the men’s singles final but he wasn't the only 37-year-old writing his name into the history books on Sunday evening.
Errani, who is the same age as Djokovic, is competing in her fifth Olympic Games, just like Djokovic, and, in the exact same way as the Serbian superstar, she has now completed the much-coveted ‘Golden Slam’ (winning all four Grand Slam titles as well as Olympic gold in the same discipline).
"It’s a dream come true," said Errani. "The Olympics was always so special for me. I’m enjoying this moment. I have to thank Jasmine for playing with me all year. It was amazing."
The Italian pair, who are great friends on and off the court started much the slower. Paolini, in particular, looked out of sorts – a far cry from the player who had delighted the crowds in recent weeks and who had finished runner-up in women’s singles at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
The 28-year-old’s unforced error count was mounting quickly and handed the younger pairing the opening set 6-2 after just 36 minutes.
But experience is key in the big moments. Andreeva and Shnaider, whose combined age is the same as Errani’s, wobbled during the second set.
Shnaider’s serve was broken twice – including from 40-0 up in the opening game of the second set – and Andreeva had to fight back from 0-40 to claim the Russians’ only game as they fell 6-1 in the second set to mean the match would be decided by a super tiebreak.
A wonderful rally off the back of an underarm serve from Errani saw the Italians edge ahead 8-5 in the decisive match tiebreak before Shnaider netted to bring the match to a close.
Andreeva and Shnaider might not have come away with the medal they had wanted but the experience will no doubt help them, with both players being at the very start of their careers.
Andreeva, who is the youngest woman in history to win a doubles medal, said that she would like to think she has many more bites at winning in future.
"It's great to have a medal," she said. "I think we’ll play maybe four or five more Olympics - that's my plan anyway! I think we can try to achieve more medals in the future. It’s my first Olympics and we have a medal right away. We can be super proud of ourselves. We’ll see - maybe next Olympics is the time when we’re going to achieve everything."