Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski’s attempt to become Britain’s French men’s pairs champion since 1933 ended in disappointment by being defeated 6-0 by 6-7 (5-7) 7-5 by Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos in the final.
The match had the worst possible start to the British pair when they were broken three times and at the wrong end of a bagel on the opening set.
They came out with renewed energy and greater resilience in the second, saving five points of interruption to force a tie-break.
Spain’s Granollers and Argentina’s zebbies claimed the first mini-key, but Salisbury and Skupski returned directly with a double mini-wave before ending the set.
The moment remained with Liverpool’s skipski and London Salisbury, who only joined at the beginning of the season in the third, when they won the first break of the withdrawal in the opening game.
But his opponents immediately returned to restore parity in the Philippe Chatrier court.
Salisbury and Skupski spent two interruption points at 3-3 and failed to convert an additional 5-5 opportunity.
This missed opportunity was to prove crucial as the experienced Zeballos, 40, and Granollers, 39, won three points of interruption in the next game in Skupski’s withdrawal. They converted the first to win a first Grand Slam title fold the fourth final as a pairing.
