MELBOURNE, Australia – The 2022 Australian Open fortnight concluded on Sunday in Melbourne. Team Yonex captured seven divisions: Men’s Doubles, Girls’ Singles and Doubles, Men’s Wheelchair Singles, Women’s Wheelchair Singles and Doubles, and Men’s Quad Doubles.
Providing the world standard of racquet stringing, the Yonex Stringing Team strung a record 7,392 racquets using Made-in-Japan PRECISION 9.0 machines that excel in precision stringing during their time in Melbourne.
Men’s Doubles: Special K
The wildcard pairing of Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis completed their “dream run” en route to their first Grand Slam title. Known for their singles play, the duo never had their sights set on the doubles trophy.
Round by round, the crowd capacity increased, the entertainment was at an all-time high, and the Aussies became the ones to beat.
Their magical route to the finals included wins over the World No. 1-ranked pair and the 15th, 6th, and 3rd seeds.
"This week has been a dream come true for me,” said Kyrgios, who talked about bringing new fans to the sport with a different approach to the game. “I wouldn't want to do it with anyone else.”
“I can honestly say we did not expect to even come close to this, but with the help of [the crowd] all week, [it has] been unbelievable," Kokkinakis echoed. "The coverage it got and the support for us, we couldn't ask for anything more."
Girls’ Singles & Doubles: A Special Sweep
Six of the eight quarterfinalist in the girls’ singles event were a part of Team Yonex. Petra Marcinko (CRO), who finished 2021 as the top-ranked junior in the world, won her first junior Grand Slam event with a straight-set victory in the finals.
“I kept calm in important moments. I kept my game through all the time,” said Marcinko, who played the finals on Rod Laver Arena. “Having this trophy, winning a Grand Slam, for me it's so big."
Top-seeded Diana Shnaider (RUS) and her partner won the doubles title, defeating a Canadian pairing in straight sets in the finals.
Wheelchair: Legends of the Sport
World No. 1 Shingo Kunieda (JPN) won his 11th Australian Open singles title, 27th major singles title, and is closing in on 50 Grand Slam titles across both singles and doubles with 48.
“I played really good, my best tennis in my career, especially final set, yeah. I cannot tell how I [did it],” said Kunieda.
In women’s wheelchair singles and doubles, Diede de Groot (NED) again showed why she is the best player in the world. De Groot won all her singles matches in straight sets and dropped just one set in doubles to win her 26th major title in the two divisions combined.
De Groot has won the past six major singles titles, including the Golden Slam in 2021.
In Quad Doubles, David Wagner (USA) won his 9th Australian Open title with a come-from-behind win. It was his 22nd doubles title and 28th major victory overall.
