El Salvador's Marcelo Arevalo (right) holds the national flag and Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands holds the Curacao flag as they pose with the trophy after winning the men's doubles final against Croatia's Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek of the US in three sets, 6-7 (4-7'), 7-6 (7-5) 6-3, at the French Open tennis tournament in Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France, on June 4, 2022. (THIBAULT CAMUS / AP)
PARIS - El Salvador's Marcelo Arevalo became the first player from Central America to claim a Grand Slam title when he paired up with Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands to win the men's doubles final at the French Open on Saturday.
Arevalo and Rojer, seeded 12th, beat Croatian Ivan Dodig and American Austin Krajicek 6-7(4) 7-6(5) 6-3 after saving three match points and converting their only break chance.
At last year's US Open, Arevalo was the first player from Central America to take part in a final at a major.
On Saturday, he converted his second opportunity with a gritty performance on Court Philippe Chatrier.
El Salvador's Marcelo Arevalo (right) and Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands plays a shot against Croatia's Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek of the US during the men's doubles final at the French Open tennis tournament in Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France on June 4, 2022. (THAIBAULT CAMUS / AP)
At last year's US Open, El Salvador's Marcelo Arevalo was the first player from Central America to take part in a final at a major
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Dodig and Krajicek, who had come from a set down to eliminate top seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury in the quarter-finals, did not face a single break point in the opening set.
Their opponents saved five but conceded the set in the tiebreak as the unseeded duo remained strong on serve.
The second set was a carbon copy of the first until the tiebreak, when Arevalo and Rojer made the most of their chances.
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They finally broke for 4-2 in the decider and held throughout, ending it with a service game to love
