World No.1 and No.2 Niels Vink and Sam Schroder clinched the gold medal after defeating the Brits 6-1, 6-1 in front of a big crowd on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

Lapthorne leaves Paris as a four-time medallist with three silvers (2012, 2016 & 2024) and one bronze (2016), while for 22-year-old Slade, it marks a first medal on his Paralympic debut.

This is the 17^th medal that ParalympicsGB have won in wheelchair tennis with Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid still competing in this year's Games across the men’s singles and doubles draws.

Lapthorne was competing in his third Paralympics gold medal match – becoming only the fourth Brit in history to do so alongside Hewett, Reid and Peter Norfolk.

After the match, the 33-year-old confirmed that while he will continue to play, this would be his last Paralympic Games.

"That was my last Paralympic match," he said. "It's been such a journey and it feels bittersweet. The vibes and crowds here have been so special, I feel ready to leave it. You think you can do this forever but when you wake up and realise that's not the case, it's weird.

"It's been an emotional 24 hours, it's not easy to win four Paralympic medals in wheelchair tennis.

"It's time for me to leave this career behind and I'm leaving on a centre court at a Grand Slam venue, in front of a huge crowd.

"I'm not retiring from the sport as a whole; I'm carrying on till my body tells me to stop but I'm ready to start a life away from the court. Other things need to take priority over playing tennis matches and that's not happened since I was 16 years old.

"I said I wouldn't wear this shirt unless I could win a gold medal and I don't think I can do that in Los Angeles.

"For a young player (Slade) to come in and do what he's done is amazing. I've really enjoyed playing the Paralympics with a younger partner. He's a great bloke and he deserves that medal."

For Slade on the other hand, this is hopefully just the beginning having shown his quality in the final and a semi-final win against Brazil's Leandro Pena and Ymanitu Silva.

"There are some mixed emotions following the match, we knew it was going to be tough against the best two players in the world," he said. "I'm disappointed we didn't put up more of a fight.

"This is my first Games and to come away with a medal is mind blowing, so perhaps I need a bit more time to properly reflect.

"We've known for the past year that this was a big medal opportunity. It was a lot of stress, a lot of pressure and there were times I cracked. There were times when I was considering whether this sport was for me.

"It's through lots of hard work that I can sit here, a first time Paralympian, with a medal around my neck."

It was a tough start for the Brits who quickly found themselves 3-0 down, before losing a lengthy service game off Slade’s racket - despite the young Brit hitting arguably the shot of the match with a deft drop shot.

The Brits got a reward in the fifth game, capitalising on some key errors from Schroder to get on the scoreboard and give them a boost – but the Dutch team responded quickly and wrapped up the set on a second serve ace from Vink.

Lapthorne and Slade had game point to edge in front early in the second set at 1-1 but Vink and Schroder had other ideas. The Brits continued to battle away in the rallies but the Dutch team played an almost flawless match – winning 17 of the last 22 points to defend their gold medal.