Doubles semifinals: Halys and Herbert book a home final
The French pair will contest their first Rolex Paris Masters final this Sunday.
A touch of revenge
They had never found a way past Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten (No.1). It was at this same stage of the competition, and against the same opponents, that Quentin Halys and Pierre-Hugues Herbert bowed out of the Rolex Paris Masters in 2025. They also fell to the Finnish-British duo in the semifinals of the most recent Roland-Garros. In two previous meetings, the French Davis Cup pair had yet to win a single set against the world No.1s.
On Saturday, roared on by an enthusiastic home crowd, they finally found the key and booked their place in a first Masters 1000 final. A break in the seventh game of the opening set put them in front, a valuable advantage for a pair full of confidence on serve. They made no mistake when the opportunity came, converting their first set point to take the opener 6-4 in 29 minutes.
A response from the defending champions was expected, but it never really came. Despite their efficiency on serve, including 86% of points won behind their first serve, they were unable to make the most of the key moments, creating just one break-point opportunity on the way to a second-set tie-break.
There, the French pair went on the attack, reeling off six consecutive points, including two aces, to earn five match points. On the third, Quentin Halys sent the French contingent into celebration with one final ace (6-4, 7-6(3) in 1 hour and 15 minutes).
Harrison / Skupski: a winning combination
Earlier on Saturday, Christian Harrison and Neal Skupski (No.2) secured the first place in the final with a 1-hour-and-3-minute victory over Lucas Miedler and Neil Oberleitner (6-4, 6-4).
Both sets followed a very similar pattern, with Harrison and Skupski finding the breakthrough at 2-1 each time. From there, they relied on their experience in the key moments, saving 100% of the break points they faced, and on their consistency on serve, winning 79% of points behind their first serve, to protect their advantage.
They eventually converted their first match point, sealed by a winning volley from Harrison.
Winners of the Australian Open and the US Open together in 2026, Harrison and Skupski are enjoying their first season as partners and will now contest their first Masters 1000 final as a pair.
