Wheelchair tennis juggernaut Diede de Groot was on the wrong end of a huge upset on Friday as Yui Kamiji won their gold medal showdown at the Paralympics in Paris.
The last time De Groot had lost a women’s singles match in either a Grand Slam or the Paralympics was at the French Open back in 2020. That four-year streak was broken by Kamiji at Roland Garros and tears flowed on both sides after the Japanese converted match point.
De Groot has racked up a staggering 42 Grand Slam titles in wheelchair tennis by the age of just 27. All 17 of the Grand Slams staged since September 2020 in women’s singles have been won by the Dutchwoman.
Her dominance is why Friday’s result sent shockwaves through the world of tennis. Kamiji is a major player in her own right, previously reaching the top of the world rankings and winning eight major titles in women’s singles, and she went into the match against De Groot as the second seed.
It looked to be business as usual when the defending Paralympic champion raced into the lead by taking the first set 6-4, but that was merely the cue for Kamiji to start her fightback.
Levelling up the scores with a 6-3 second set, the momentum was with Kamiji as the stormed towards a monumental upset. The 30-year-old then won the decider 6-4 and immediately broke down in tears.
De Groot soon followed during an emotional embrace with her parents, as the top seed processed her first defeat in a Grand Slam or Paralympic singles match for over four years.
It sealed a double gold for Kamiji and a second disappointment for De Groot, as prior to their singles showdown, the former’s Japanese pair got the better of the latter’s Dutch duo in the women’s wheelchair doubles final on Thursday.
De Groot had won every single one of her 145 singles matches between February 2021 and May this year, when Xiaohui Li produced a massive shock at the BNP Paribas World Team Cup.
Speaking ahead of the Paris Paralympics, De Groot was well aware that her overwhelming dominance would motivate her rivals to come out swinging. “Being the No 1 player, gold is possible,” she said. “But I also know more than I knew before that other players are willing to fight for it. That’s good.
“I think it raises the level of wheelchair tennis. So many girls are fighting to win, which is very positive for wheelchair tennis. I will fight to win, and I’m just looking forward to Paris.”
