John Peers and Olivia Gadecki have become the first pairing to win back-to-back Australian Open mixed doubles titles in 37 years. The local wildcards won a thriller in Friday’s final against Kristina Mladenovic and Manuel Guinard, who were bidding to become the first French duo to win the mixed crown at Melbourne Park. Peers, who also won the US Open mixed title in 2022 and Australian Open men’s doubles title Finland’s Henri Kontinen in 2017, made a series of uncharacteristic errors in the first set. But hard-hitting Gadecki held her nerve and then Peers fired a winner to set up two championship points, securing the trophy with the second. “Thank you for letting me share the court with you and to hold the trophy again this year is incredible.