Luz and Zormann win Youth Olympic boys' doubles final
Orlando Luz and Marcelo Zormann added the Youth Olympic boys' doubles gold medal to the junior Wimbledon title they won earlier this year to end their week in Nanjing on a high on Sunday.
The Brazilian pair closed out a fierce battle with Andrey Rublev and Karen Khachanov, defeating the Russian pair 7-5 3-6 [10-3] to follow up on their fine win together earlier in the year on the grass of the All England Club.
"It feels amazing. This is for our country so it's amazing for me," said Luz. "[At Wimbledon] we were playing for us. Here we are playing for our country so it's different, but I have a gold and a silver medal so I'm very happy."
Luz had to settle for second place in yesterday's boys' singles final but he made up for any lingering disappointment with a fine display in the doubles, in which the pair overcame a considerable first set deficit to help them on their way to victory.
"It was very tough at the start," said Zormann. "We were losing 5-2 in the first set. We started to play well, things went good, and then we made it!"
Asked what the pair planned to do with their medals from Nanjing, Luz was quick to reply.
"It's a gift for my Dad," he said without a moment's hesitation. "He'll put them in the house, I think, somewhere we have to look every day."
There was disappointment for Rublev who, having lost to the Brazilians in the Junior Wimbledon doubles final with Stefan Kozlov, was on the wrong end of a defeat to Luz and Zormann again.
"Two times in the final. Two times so close, two times a lot of chances. It's really so upsetting," said Rublev.
"I had a lot of chances in the doubles. I was a little bit unlucky in the dangerous moments. We were unlucky and they were lucky. We were so close, but it happens.
"You always want to win," chipped in Khachanov. "This match was close and because of that I can be disappointed. But we were second, so it's good and it's better than nothing."
The jubilant Brazilians, meanwhile, left the assembled media in little doubt of their intentions for the evening ahead.
"I hope to party," laughed Luz. "The Brazilian guys, all of the Brazilians playing in sports, we have to do something tonight. And then tomorrow we're off to prepare for the US Open."