The Australian Open 2025 men’s doubles final is set, and it promises to be a blockbuster.
On Thursday, third seeds Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori, finalists at AO 2024, and reigning Wimbledon champions sixth seeds Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten, secured semifinal victories and a shot at lifting the trophy.
First up at Rod Laver Arena, Bolelli and Vavassori won their ninth consecutive match of the season by defeating Andre Goransson and Sem Verbeek 2-6 6-3 6-4.
“We raised our level, we raised our energy and I think the key of the match was the attitude, we keep fighting, we keep digging,” said Vavassori, who represented Italy in the United Cup earlier this month.
On Saturday, the Italian team of Bolelli and Vavassori are hoping to capture their first Grand Slam together, which would provide a form of redemption after runner-up finishes at AO 2024 and Roland Garros 2024.
A victory would be the pair’s second title in 2025 following the Adelaide International, and provide a full-circle moment for the elder of the duo. Alongside Fabio Fognini, Bolelli clinched the AO 2015 crown, which was a win for the record books: they were the first all-Italian team to claim a men’s doubles Grand Slam title in the Open era.
Bolelli, 39, admits that win was somewhat unexpected, in part because he and Fognini were focused on their singles careers at the time.
But as the third seed with Vavassori in Melbourne this year, the belief and ambition is crystal clear. “We want to win,” he said, adding that the AO is the team’s favourite tournament.
“We are going to do really our best on Saturday to bring home the trophy,” said the Bologna-born Bolelli, who won titles in Beijing, Halle and Buenos Aires with Vavassori in 2024.
They’ll face Heliovaara and Patten in the final after the duo toppled German fourth seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz, the reigning Nitto ATP Finals champions, 6-4 3-6 7-6 [10-7].
The Finnish-British combination, who also won titles in Stockholm, Lyon and Marrakech last year, secured 44 of 55 net points and saved four of five break points.
“One more!” roared Heliovaara after clinching match point with a crisp volley winner, referencing the sole victory needed to secure a maiden AO title.
“We showed our best and can be really proud”, said the 35-year-old Finn. “If you asked me five, six years ago if this was possible when I was making PowerPoints and Excel sheets in the office, I would have laughed,” grinned the right-hander, who gave up corporate life and made a return to professional tennis in 2017.
“I haven’t regretted a single day,” added Heliovaara, who won the AO 2007 junior boy’s doubles title with a different British partner, Graeme Dyce.
“We played to win, we were not afraid to give everything on court and it paid off,” said Heliovaara, who added that he enjoyed competing at Rod Laver Arena for the first time in his career.
“Never really dreamed of playing on that court,” said 28-year-old Patten. The Brit is thrilled the duo's rankings will be inside the top 10 come Monday. “We’re starting to prove ourselves as one of the top pairs in the world.”
Heliovaara said a shared moment of cooking reindeer stew for Patten during a training week in Finland, when he hosted his doubles partner at home, has strengthened their bond. “It shows on court,” he said.
The duo lost the final of the China Open in Beijing to Bolleli and Vavassori in October, 10-5 in the match tiebreak.
“I really hope to do better this time,” Heliovaara said. “They play with a lot of heart, a lot of passion."
“We've got to be disciplined with our tactical game…but also be performers when it matters, on those big moments, that’s when we need to step up.”
Before that, Friday’s women’s doubles semifinals will decide who vies for the AO 2025 title.
Top seeds Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend take on Diana Shnaider and Mirra Andreeva, and third seeds Su-Wei Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko face second seeds Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe.
And in the night session’s mixed doubles final, the first between two all-Australian teams since 1967, the wildcard pairings of Kimberly Birrell and John-Patrick Smith and Olivia Gadecki and John Peers will chase AO 2025 glory.