With three former collegiate players in the final of the mixed doubles, a former collegiate champion was always guaranteed to come from the last match of this year’s Wimbledon and it was Neal Skupski (LSU) and Desirae Krawczyk (Arizona State) who tasted glory. Skupski and Krawczyk, the No. 7 seeds, beat the all-British pairing of Joe Salisbury (Memphis) and Harriet Dart 6-2, 7-6 (1) to give Skupski his first grand slam title.
Skupski and Krawczyk broke Dart’s serve early on and they dominated the first set but the British pair hit back in the second only to be outplayed in the tiebreak as Krawczyk won her second consecutive grand slam title.
It was a special moment for Skupski, who benefitted from Salisbury’s decision to switch from Krawczyk despite the fact the pair had won the French Open last month. “I actually can’t believe it,” Skupski said. “You grow up watching Wimbledon on TV, so to win it is amazing.”
Krawczyk said she had not realized they might play Salisbury and Dart until quite late in the week but was just delighted to add Wimbledon to her French Open crown. “I never imagined I’d win back-to-back grand slam titles, it’s incredible,” Desirae said.
