Czech Katerina Siniakova and Sem Verbeek of the Netherlands claimed the Wimbledon mixed doubles title on Thursday, defeating Britain’s Joe Salisbury and Brazilian Luisa Stefani 7-6(3), 7-6(3).<\/p>\n
Facing home favourite Salisbury<\/a> and Stefani<\/a> on Centre Court, the Czech-Dutch duo held their nerve, while Stefani appeared to be hampered by a leg issue in the second set.<\/p>\n As Siniakova<\/a> sealed victory with an overhead smash, the duo celebrated their first title together<\/a>, Siniakova\u2019s maiden mixed doubles Grand Slam and Verbeek<\/a>\u2019s first Grand Slam triumph of any kind.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s very special, I mean it means a lot – we had a lot of fun on the court and I really enjoyed it, it was a really amazing time here,” Siniakova said after lifting the trophy.<\/p>\n For the 29-year-old Siniakova, the win added to her 10 Grand Slam women\u2019s doubles titles, including the Australian Open crown with American Taylor Townsend in January.<\/p>\n “Katerina, thank you so much, it\u2019s been an honour to compete next to such a great doubles legend, one of the best to ever do it, and thank you for making this a Thursday I will remember for the rest of my life,” the 31-year-old Verbeek said.<\/p>\n Salisbury, who faced the disappointment of home fans hoping to see a British champion, said margins did not fall in his and Stefani\u2019s favour.<\/p>\n “It’s always tough to lose a final, but they played amazing, so congratulations. They were too good in the tie-breaks today,” Salisbury said.<\/p>\n