Michael Venus and his American partner Ryan Harrison have won the French Open men's doubles title with 7-6(5) 6-7(4) 6-3 win over Mexican Santiago Gonzalez and American Donald Young in the final.
Michael Venus and Ryan Harrison after winning the French Open Men's Doubles final. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Venus and Harrison dominated the first set, putting their opponents under pressure in front of a 4000-strong crowd.
Harrison/Venus win @rolandgarros men's dbls - Venus 1st New Zealander to win a GS title since Judy Chaloner won women's dbls at 79 Aus Open
— ITF (@ITF_Tennis) June 10, 2017
Venus and Harrison have only played together as a team since the start of the clay court season, winning the ATP title in Portugal before some mixed results in the lead up to the French Open.
The win will see Venus' ranking of 39th climb as high as 15th in the doubles rankings, he will also get a share of the $850,000 prize money.
Venus said the pair have been good friends for many years which makes the win more special.
"We've always spoken about being able to play together at tournaments, it's just kind of happened where both of our rankings are at a similar spot so we've had the opportunity to - and it's paid off.
'You never know going into a partnership how well it's going to work, you always hope for the best, i think knowing each other so well is a huge bonus," Venus said.
Michael Venus during the French Open Men's Doubles final. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Ryan Harrison said he always dreamed of winning a Grand Slam.
"It hasn't sunk in yet, it feels surreal - doing it with Michael is special because he's like a brother, he's been a part of my family for a long time.
"He taught me how to drive, he's been there for a most of the special moments in my life including my wedding where he was a groomsman, and now we've won a Grand Slam together," Harrison said.
Judy Chaloner was the last New Zealander to win a Grand Slam when she won the doubles at the Australian Open in 1979.
The only other New Zealand man to win a Grand Slam doubles title in the Open era is Onny Parun, who teamed with Australian Dick Crealy to win the French Open in 1974.
Onny Parun won the French Open doubles title with Australian Dick Crealy in 1974. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Parun got up at 4am to watch the final this morning.
"It was a very close match, but Michael I thought was the best player on the court.
"He played brilliantly, they could have won in two sets but they got a little nervous towards the end, but they deserved to win.
"Anyone who remembers my efforts, they're showing their age, but for Michael this should give him a lot of confidence," Parun said.
He said he had heard Venus and Harrison would not be playing as a team at Wimbledon because Harrison wanted to focus on his singles game.
"That is a mistake, I think after this morning it's something they should reconsider - with their record now they can beat anyone at Wimbledon."
-RNZ
