Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson’s Wimbledon fortnight has not started well, but the Australian combo may have a golden finish. After defeating the top seeds, the pair has advanced to the men’s doubles final and will be confident of victory.
Purcell and Thompson defeated Spaniard Marcel Granollers and Argentine Horacio Zeballos 6-4 6-4 in 71 minutes on Thursday to advance to the final on Saturday (early Sunday AEST) at the All England Club.
They will face unseeded Briton Henry Patten and Finn Harri Heliovaara, who overcame seasoned Queen’s Club winners Neal Skupski and New Zealander Michael Venus 6-4, 7-6 (7-1) in the semifinals.
Purcell was defeated in the first round of the men’s singles by Finland’s Otto Virtanen, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2. Thompson, who appeared abnormally flat, was eliminated by Brandon Nakashima in the following round by the same score. But the doubles gave the couple a second opportunity.
Seeded 15, they have only lost one set in five rounds, defeating Argentine No. 11 seeds Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Moltoni in the quarterfinals.
“I feel we were never in doubt today,” Purcell remarked. “We played pretty well and felt quite comfortable out there. Nothing to take away from them; they are excellent players. I just felt like we were on, and when we are on, we are really difficult to beat.”
Purcell, 26, is entering his fourth major doubles final. He previously won Wimbledon in 2022 with Matt Ebden and has reached the Australian Open final twice (2020 with Luke Saville and 2022 with Ebden).
Thompson, 30, is in his first Grand Slam doubles final. “One of our goals is to win a slam,” said Thompson. “Being in a grand slam final, especially at Wimbledon, is something extraordinary.
Purcell and Thompson seized the match’s opening break in the seventh game, the first time the top seeds had lost a service game in the tournament, and held on to win the first set.
Granollers and Zeballos hoped to reach the Wimbledon final
Granollers and Zeballos hoped to reach the Wimbledon final for the third time in four years, but the Australians broke again in the ninth game of the second set. Purcell then served.
“We both served well, we both returned well, we did everything quite well,” Thompson went on. “It was a really clean match.”
The combination now has 26 wins in 30 matches together. They will be attempting to become the eighth Australian pair to win the Open since its inception in 1968, behind Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge (six times) and John Newcombe and Tony Roche (four).
“Man, we just want it bad,” Purcell explained. “This is the one to win. I remember how nice it felt the last time, and I really want to do it with Thommo.
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