Record breaker Diede de Groot and teenager Tokito Oda win wheelchair titles at Roland Garros

PARIS (AP) — Top-ranked Diede de Groot won a record 22nd Grand Slam wheelchair singles title when she rallied to beat unseeded Zhu Zhenzhen 4-6, 6-2 , 6-3 in the women's final at Roland Garros on Saturday.

In the men's wheelchair final, second-seeded Tokito Oda of Japan successfully defended his Roland Garros title by winning 7-5, 6-3 against No. 3 seed Gustavo Fernandez of Argentina 3. It was 18-year-old Oda's fourth major title.

The victory for De Groot, 27, allowed her to overtake fellow Dutchwoman Esther Vergeer for the most women's singles titles.

“Of course I am really proud to now have this record, but at the same time I know the conditions in which Esther was playing,” said De Groot. “She couldn't play singles at Wimbledon, a lot of Grand Slam tournaments weren't even called Grand Slams yet. So it's not really a comparison.

Vergeer enjoyed a 470-match winning streak during his career, while De Groot's unbeaten run ended last month at 145.

“Of course I'm really proud of myself, but most of all I'm proud of myself for continuing this. But for me, Esther will always have that legacy where for so long (she was undefeated), about 470 matches. That's how good she was,” De Groot said. “We could be at the top together. I feel like it's more together instead of who is better.

It was also the 14th consecutive major title for two-time Paralympic gold medalist De Groot.

De Groot appears in a television commercial with French car manufacturer Renault, which aired on French television during the tournament. She is one of three brand ambassadors in tennis, alongside Frenchman Luca Van Assche and Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime, 21st in the world.

“It's really important for us to be visible in these kinds of things, because a lot of people don't know me, and a lot of people don't know any of the wheelchair athletes that play here,” she said. declared. “So we need the help of these big brands. I'm really proud of Renault for this.

Zhu, 34, was seeking to win her first Grand Slam title and become the second Chinese player to win a major singles title in any category outside junior since Li Na, a two-time major winner in 2014.

“She did very well considering it’s her first final,” De Groot said of her opponent. “She should be really proud of herself.”

Oda will now look to defend her Wimbledon title on grass. He won every major tournament except the US Open, where he never got past the quarterfinals.

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