Koolhof and Mektic claim ATP Finals doubles title

[November 23, 2020]    LONDON (Reuters) - Dutch-Croatian duo Wesley Koolhof and Nikola Mektic claimed their first title together by winning the ATP Finals on Sunday, edging Jurgen Melzer and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-2 3-6 10-5.

Austria's Jurgen Melzer and France's Edouard Roger-Vasselin in action during their doubles final match against Netherlands' Wesley Koolhof and Croatia's Nikola Mektic REUTERS/Toby Melville

The fifth seeds, in their maiden season together, had lost in their other two finals, including at the U.S. Open, but it proved a case of third time lucky.

"It was a dream come true just to have qualified here for this event," Koolhof, the fourth Dutchman to win the doubles title at the season-ender, said.

"It's our first title together. Not bad for a first one," Mektic said.

Austrian Melzer, a former top-10 singles player who is retiring, had hoped to end his career on a high.

"It was a hell of a ride," the 39-year-old said. "We have been fighting hard since Roland Garros, played almost every week to get here. It stings today, and it hurts, but in the end we're going to look back at being runners-up here."

(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Toby Davis)

[© 2020 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2020 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.