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Harrison-Skupski snap Miedler-Oberleitner's 7-match winning streak to reach Paris final

Digital Desk | Paris, Nov 8 (IANS) Christian Harrison and Neal Skupski secured a place in the Paris Masters final with a 6-4,6-4 win one-hour-and three-minute victory over Lucas Miedler and Neil, keeping alive their outside chance of finishing the year as the worlds top doubles team. Heliovaara and Patten are currently 1,570 points clear of second-placed Harrison and Skupski in the ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, the barometer for discerning who will finish 2026 with Year-End ATP Doubles No. 1. The second-seeded duo snapped Lucas Miedler and Neil Oberleitners seven-match winning streak with a 6-4, 6-4 triumph at the French indoor hard-court event. Harrison and Skupski, who have lifted major titles at the Australian Open and the US Open in their first year as a team, converted both break points they earned to down their in-form Austrian opponents, according to ATP Stats. 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 per cent of the break points they faced, and on their consistency on serve, winning 79 per cent 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. Standing between Harrison and Skupski and their first Masters 1000 trophy together will be home wild cards Quentin Halys and Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who upset top seeds Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten 6-4, 7-6(3). A break in the seventh game of the opening set put Hayls and Herbert in front. 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).