"He says we were lucky, it makes me angry" - says Pavlyuchenkova on Rublev

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Andrey Rublev won the gold medal at the mixed doubles event in Tokyo.

The run towards the gold medal was an unexpected one as neither Pavlyuchenkova nor Rublev expected to be in that position. They faced compatriots Vesnina and Karatsev in the final and saved a match point en route to the gold. Speaking to the media afterwards Pavlyuchenkova joked with the press saying about Rublev:

"He always says that we’re lucky. It kind of makes me angry. Of course, there was always a bit of luck. Everything has to come together in a puzzle, but I think when it comes to these match tiebreaks, especially in such tight matches, it’s also mental. I think we were fighting like crazy in every match."

Rublev himself was overjoyed with the triumph as he fulfilled a lifelong dream he had since childhood. He said:

"The feeling was unreal. [In that moment], you feel release of all your body that was coming since you were a kid. Since I was a kid I was watching Olympics on TV, watching the different athletes winning a medal, watching winter games, summer games."

Rublev further added:

"I was not even thinking about winning a medal. I was hoping that one day I was going to compete. "Now I’m here with a gold medal. After that shot, in one second all this time passing, all the tears, all the pain… it’s a release, you know."