Wang Xinyu (R)/Zhang Zhizhen of China react during the mix doubles gold medal match of tennis between Wang Xinyu/Zhang Zhizhen of China and Katerina Siniakova/Tomas Machac of Czech Republic at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France, on Aug. 2, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

So close, so tough and so proud — China's tennis aces Zhang Zhizhen and Wang Xinyu have served the sport's momentum in their country with an extra boost, winning a mixed doubles Olympic medal in Paris.

After battling through four matches all into the 10-point third-set decider, Zhang and Wang had to settle with a second place on the podium but seemed as proud as the winners — Czech duo Katerina Siniakova and Tomas Machac — after their mixed doubles gold-medal match on Court Philippe-Chatrier at Roland Garros on Friday.

After all, it was only the country's second Olympic medal in tennis, 20 years since women's double pair Li Ting and Sun Tiantian won the first gold at Athens 2004.

And the fact that the Zhang-Wang team was only paired right before the mixed doubles tournament kicked off, due to the last-minute withdrawal of Zhang's original partner Zheng Qinwen, China's top-ranked women's player, has added an extra laurels on their final appearance.

"I believe this match has drawn in a lot of people back in China to watch tennis and grow interest in tennis," Zhang, a men's world No 41, said after the final, won by the Czech pair 6-2, 5-7, 10-8 in one hour and 17 minutes.

"A lot of general sports fans still don't know the exact rules of tennis but watched our match anyway. I hope what we did will help more people understand tennis and better promote the sport in China."
Wang, a 36th-ranked women's player, said to win an Olympic medal for her country ranks among the proudest moments in her professional career.

"At this moment, I feel grateful for being a tennis player. 10 years, or 15 years ago, not so many people knew about this sport. I am super happy about this progress," said Wang, who was already packing for the airport following her singles second-round exit when Zhang called her for a make-shift mixed doubles team on July 30.

Silver medalists Wang Xinyu/Zhang Zhizhen of China attend the victory ceremony for the mix doubles of tennis at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France, on Aug. 2, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

Entering the final as reasonably the favorite, thanks to their relationship off the court, doubles specialists Siniakova and Machac started strong to break the Chinese team twice to clinch the first set with ease.

Zhang and Wang stepped up their game in the second, breaking their opponents in the 12th game to force a deciding third-set, where the first team scores 10 points and wins the match.

Siniakova and Machac eventually prevailed with a more consistent performance than the Chinese pair in the decider, delivering the Czech delegation's first gold medal in Paris.

Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime and Gabriela Dabrowski beat Dutch team Demi Schuurs and Wesley Koolhof in an earlier bronze-medal match to complete the podium in mixed doubles.

With one medal secured already, China's tennis fans will stay locked on the red-clay central court at Roland Garros on Saturday, expecting Zheng to deliver a double delight in the women's singles final against Donna Vekic of Croatia.

Zheng has made full commitment in singles, after she had to withdraw from the mixed doubles due to a rain-enforced scheduling clash.