Kiwi doubles exponent Michael Venus will chase his second Grand Slam crown, when he and Canadian partner Bianca Andreescu contest the French Open mixed final.
The pair have dispatched American Nathaniel Lammons and Canadian Gabriella Dabrowski 7-6 7-6 in the semi-finals to book their spot in the title match on Thursday night (NZ time).
Venus and Andreescu entered the mixed doubles draw at Roland Garros as alternates, and have battled throughout their three rounds, needing super-tiebreak sets to progress to the final four.
Neither combo managed a service break in the semi-final, with both sets decided by nervy tiebreaks.
Venus, 35, already has a Grand Slam doubles title to his name, taking the French Open men's crown with American Ryan Harrison in 2017, among his 20 career ATP tournament victories.
He has yet to win a mixed doubles title, but reached the 2017 and 2019 US Open finals with Chan Hao-ching of Chinese Taipei.
Andreescu, 22, is better known as the 2019 US Open singles champion, but has taken up doubles in a bid to boost her career, after several years of injury and mental health issues. She took time off tennis last year, volunteering at a domestic violence shelter.
"You're alone out there, you’re alone on the court, you don’t have anyone really helping you," she told The Guardian. "It's like a lonely, lonely journey in a way, but if you try to find love in the process, that’s the most important thing... basically, love and appreciation."
Currently ranked 42nd in the world, Andreescu toppled 18th seed Victoria Azarenka in her opening singles match at Roland Garros, before falling to Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko in the third round.
She and Venus face Japanese Miya Kato and German Tim Puetz - Venus' former doubles partner - in the mixed doubles final.
