logo Agência Brasil
Sports

Luisa Stefani and Rafael Matos win the Australian Open

The duo is the first 100% Brazilian team to win a Grand Slam title
Igor Santos
Published on 27/01/2023 - 18:21
Rio de Janeiro
Luisa Stefani e Rafael Matos se classificam à final de duplas mistas do Aberto da Austrália de 2023
© Divulgação/Tennis Australian

The paulista Luisa Stefani and the gaúcho Rafael Matos won, in Melbourne, the Indian Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna and were mixed doubles champions at the Australian Open.

The night of Thursday (26), afternoon of Friday in Melbourne, Australia, reserved an unprecedented achievement for the Brazilian tennis: the paulista Luisa Stefani and the gaúcho Rafael Matos beat the duo formed by the Indians Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna by 2 sets to 0, partial 7/6 (7/2) and 6/2 and won the Australian Open title in the mixed doubles. For the first time, a partnership between two Brazilian tennis players is the champion of a Grand Slam, as each of the main tennis tournaments in the world is called.

The country already had titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles, but the other Brazilians to win in doubles (Maria Esther Bueno, Marcelo Melo, Bruno Soares and Thomaz Koch) always did it playing with foreign partners.

The victory in the final - which lasted a little under an hour and a half - crowned a perfect week for the duo that has been playing together for only one month and has lost only one set in five matches. Luisa and Rafael played for the first time as a pair during the United Cup, a country competition held at the end of December.