Two years ago Briton Jordanne Whiley and her doubles partner, Japan’s Yui Kamiji, were not speaking to one another. They hadn’t had a falling-out, they just didn’t share a common language.
But that has never stopped the close friends and fearsome doubles pair becoming a success, and on Sunday the defending champions retained their Wheelchair Ladies' Doubles title in front of large and vocal crowd on Court 16.
Whiley and Kamiji have come a long way since joining forces in 2013, when they relied on facial expressions and hand signals to communicate on court. “I think we just click. When we met in 2013 Yui didn’t speak any English but that didn’t really matter, we seemed to be able to communicate fine through facial expressions and sign language until Yui learned English,” Whiley said. “There’s just a special bond between us and over the two years we’ve got to know each other and now we’re just like sisters.”
In a final befitting the fierce on-court rivalry shared between the top two seeds, Whiley and Kamiji were pushed to three hard-fought sets by No.2 duo Jiske Griffioen and Aniek van Koot but eventually clinched the title 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 after more than two-and-a-half hours on court.
The win was Whiley and Kamiji’s sixth Grand Slam title – and second of the 2015 season – and will be remembered as “the best ever” for home champion Whiley.
In a fluctuating start all four players were broken in the first four games. Whiley and Kamiji eventually held for a 3-2 lead, then won the next three games to take the set 6-2.
Leading 3-0 in the second the top seeds looked on course to romp to a second Wimbledon title, but their Dutch opponents mounted a spirited fightback and at 5-5 broke serve before Griffioen held serve to love to level.
When we met in 2013 Yui didn't speak any English, but that didn't really matter... There's a special bond between us
But with the memory of their recent Roland Garros defeat at the hands of the Dutch still fresh in their minds, the defending champions were not about to let another title slip and, with some strong serving by Whiley and deft net play from Kamiji, the top pair secured revenge.
“We feel amazing, it was a really difficult match but we played really, really good tennis and it feels good to defend the Championships,” Whiley said.
“Today we were really strong, at Roland Garros we were very nervous and we didn’t play aggressive tennis but today we were both really aggressive and my serve was the best it’s ever been. Normally my serve is really bad at the Grand Slams but today it was actually winning points and that helped us a lot.
“It always seems to be us four in the final. Off the court we’re all friends but on court we are serious rivals and when we go head-to-head it can get quite heated because we both want to win so much. Today was really special for us, losing to them at Roland Garros was really upsetting so today was a little bit like revenge.
“Wimbledon is special to me because it’s my home, my family gets to come and watch and this is my fan base. The crowd is always amazing, every year it gets louder and louder and Yui and I both feed off the crowd so we encourage people to be loud and it’s always nice to have my family here, who are the loudest,” Whiley added.
“It’s the only time I ever get emotional when I win at Wimbledon, it’s the only time I can’t contain the emotion or the nerves.”
In another three-set classic, Gustavo Fernandez and Nicolas Peifer won their first Grand Slam title as a pair in the Wheelchair Gentlemen's Doubles with a surprise victory over No.2 seeds Michael Jeremiasz and Briton Gordon Reid.
The unseeded pair, who defeated top seeds Stephane Houdet and Shingo Kunieda to advance to the final, completed their stunning run with a 7-5, 5-7, 6-2 win in just under three hours.
Argentinian Fernandez, an eight-time Grand Slam runner-up, had never before competed at the All England Club while French partner Peifer is a former French and US Open champion, but collected his maiden Wimbledon trophy. “We knew it was going to be a tough match, they came in confident but we were ready for everything and I think that was one of the good things we did today,” Fernandez said.
“We were ready to fight, whatever it takes. We got a good first set, we lost some key points in the second set but we came back in the third ready to do everything we could. This is an amazing feeling, it’s been denied me a few times so it’s been tough but I’m very happy to pull through. It’s like a dream come true and there’s no way to explain the feeling.”
Elsewhere Sabine Ellerbrock and Lucy Shuker won the ladies’ consolation final 6-1, 6-1 over Louise Hunt and Katharina Kruger. In the gentlemen’s consolation match Houdet and Kunieda defeated Joachim Gerard and Alfie Hewett 2-6, 7-5, 6-0.
