Aus Open: Local wildcards Kubler-Polmans advance to men’s doubles final

MELBOURNE: Hometown wildcards Jason Kubler and Marc Polmans continued their impressive Australian Open, punching their ticket into the men's doubles final with a three-set 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 semifinal win over Great Britain's Luke Johnson and Poland's Jan Zielinski on Thursday.

Kubler will be bidding for his second Australian Open doubles crown after triumphing with Rinky Hijikata, also as wildcards, in 2023. Polmans, a semifinalist with Andrew Whittington at Melbourne Park in 2017, was the best player on the court on Thursday and will be contesting his first Grand Slam final.

Kubler showed no signs of being hampered by his bandaged left knee, which has undergone multiple operations, as he leapt skyward for a slam-dunk smash to conjure the first break of the match. Two games later, he unleashed back-to-back return winners on the ad side to clinch a break before holding for 5-1. Polmans clinically sealed the set when he held to love.