Heather and Jamie in late shot at glory
ANDY MURRAY and Jo Konta’s campaigns may have faltered, but as Wimbledon enters its final weekend, Britain is guaranteed a champion at the All England Club.
Defending mixed doubles champions Heather Watson and Henri Kontinen will face Jamie Murray and Martina Hingis for the title tomorrow, after both pairs came through late-night semi-finals.
For Jamie, this is a second major mixed doubles final, 10 years after he won his first Grand Slam here with Jelena Jankovic. This will also be the fifth year in six that a Murray has featured in a Wimbledon final.
Watson, meanwhile, is a win away from what would be a remarkable double triumph. One would imagine that last year’s pre-final routines would be religiously followed, but Kontinen revealed otherwise. ‘One thing is different, we’re not hitting together on Saturday,’ said the Finn. ‘She wants to hit at 11am but I want to sleep in. We’ll hit before our match.’
The holders knocked out No 2 seeds Elena Vesnina and Bruno Soares 6-4, 6-7, 6-3. Watson and Kontinen were more dominant than the scoreline suggests, but they could only take two of their 14 break-point chances. Between them they hit 23 winners and just four unforced errors. Murray and Hingis are No 1 seeds for a reason, but they will have a serious challenge against the Kontinen-Watson double act.
In a British-Finnish love-in after the match, the pair threw compliments back and forth. ‘Henri tells me what to do (with serve) and I do my best to do it,’ said Watson. ‘And if I succeed then he just goes and wins the point for us.’
‘Her returns are great, much better than mine,’ said Kontinen. ‘When she’s being brave and aggressive she’s really good at the net too. And her serve, other guys hate her serve, it’s so precise and low.’
The unlikely pairing get along famously and this undoubtedly helps them on court. Watson has struggled during her singles career when confronted by highpressure situations and she clearly thrives in the more happy-go-lucky environment of mixed doubles.
Kontinen, 27, from Helsinki, is a jocular figure, and the pair chat at changeovers like a couple of pals at a bus stop.
For all the hilarity on one side of the net, on the other it was strictly business. Brazilian Soares, who partnered Jamie Murray to two men’s doubles Grand Slams last year, is a high-class operator and Vesnina will contest today’s women’s doubles final.
Watson, on paper, was the odd one out on a court of doubles experts, but the 25-year-old from St Peter Port in Guernsey held her own superbly, making few errors and even scurrying across the net a few times to intercept volleys.
While Watson and Kontinen say they were always going to team up this year to defend their title, Murray was not even planning on playing the mixed event. But there are some things — such as an offer from an iconic 17-time doubles Grand Slam champion — that you just don’t turn down.
‘It was a great opportunity for me to play with a great player,’ said Jamie, ‘and I’m glad I did!’
Hingis, now 36, was aged 15 when she won her first major. Asked after the match whether she was happy with her choice of partner, she replied: ‘Oh yeah, very much. I made my pick and I’m very happy with it. We just click.’
What the pair lack in power they more than make up for in finesse.
Marcelo Demoliner of Brazil and Spaniard Maria Jose Martinez were their latest victims, beaten 6-2, 7-5 as the Swiss miss and her Scottish sidekick reached the final without dropping a set.