Mektic and Krajicek Fall Short in Washington Final
The Croatian-American pair lost in straight sets to the British duo Cash/Glasspool, missing out on a second joint title.
The Croatian-American pair lost in straight sets to the British duo Cash/Glasspool, missing out on a second joint title.
Croatian tennis player Nikola Mektic and his American partner Austin Krajicek failed to clinch the title at the ATP 500 tournament in Washington. In the final played on August 2, 2026, the second seeds, Britons Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool, proved superior, winning 6:3, 6:4.
The British pair secured victory with a single break of serve in each set. In the first set, they broke the Croatian-American combination in the sixth game, while in the second set they struck immediately at the start. Mektic and Krajicek had chances to fight back. In the first set, right after losing serve, they squandered three consecutive break points. In the second set, in the final game of the match, they managed to save three match points and even reached deuce, but Cash and Glasspool converted their fourth match point to claim the trophy.
The final was also marked by a lengthy rain delay, which came with the British pair leading 3:1 in the second set. The players waited more than two and a half hours for the match to resume, but it did not disrupt Cash and Glasspool on their path to the title. Mektic and Krajicek failed to convert any of their four break points throughout the entire match.
With this defeat, the 37-year-old Mektic remains on 33 career titles, having played a total of 53 ATP finals. With Krajicek, he has won one joint tournament so far, that in Delray Beach in February of this year, and the Washington final was only their second appearance together. He will have to wait a bit longer for his 34th title in doubles on the ATP tour.
