Teenager Josh Steels will play two-time Paralympic quad singles gold medallist Peter Norfolk in Bank Holiday Monday’s men’s main draw singles final at the National Wheelchair Tennis Championships at Oxstalls Indoor Tennis Centre, Gloucester.
With Norfolk having already secured his place in Monday’s final, 18-year-old Steels swapped the first two games of his remaining semi-final against Avon’s Steven Metcalfe, but soon hit top form as he went on to record a 6-1, 6-0 victory.
Steels will now bid to upset Norfolk’s quest to become the first player to win both the quad singles title and the men’s singles title at the National Wheelchair Tennis Championships. Norfolk is a former two-time quad singles National champion, but with his closest British rivals in the quad singles division currently all concentrating on international tournaments, Norfolk is taking on some of Britain’s up-and-coming men’s singles players this weekend.
Monday’s final day of play will also see Warwickshire’s Jordanne and Wiltshire’s Louise Hunt contest the deciding match in the women’s singles after they both won their semi-finals on Saturday.
Sunday’s third day of action at the 2011 National Championships saw 13-year-old Alfie Hewett retain his boys’ singles title in the Lord’s Taverners Wheelchair Tennis Junior Championships. Hewett defeated fellow Norfolk athlete Alex Mitton 6-2, 6-0 to complete his three round-robin matches unbeaten. Meanwhile, West Sussex 15-year-old Lauren Jones won the girls’ singles title for the first time, having finished undefeated in her two singles matches on Saturday against Warwickshire’s Charlotte Moore and Hertfordshire’s Ella Beaumont.
Hewett won his second title of the day when he retained the junior doubles crown, this time partnering Beaumont. Hewett and Beaumont beat Charlotte Moore and Jones to give Beaumont her second junior doubles title in three years.
A busy day for the junior players saw Jones reach Monday’s women’s main draw doubles final, partnering Whiley. Whiley and Jones, playing together for the first time, defeated Debbie Brazier and Debbie Thomas 6-3, 6-4 in their semi-final. They will now face Hunt and Shropshire’s Val Fisher in Monday’s final after Hunt and Fisher defeated Cheltenham’s Emma Aldred-Tow and Cambridgeshire’s Laura Coteman 6-0, 6-0. Jones will also contest Monday’s women’s D Division Singles final.
Hewett had an exceptionally busy day on Sunday, playing four matches, but he and Steels were unable to book a place in Monday’s men’s main draw doubles final in the penultimate match of the day to finish.
Hewett and Steels made a superb start to their doubles semi-final against the vastly experienced pairing of Norfolk and former Great Britain international Andy McErlean. However, after Norfolk and McErlean had edged the second set they went on to seal a 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory, despite Hewett and Steels coming from 5-0 down in the final set.
Norfolk and McErlean face second seeds Metcalfe and Scotland’s Keith Thom in Monday’s final.
The National Wheelchair Tennis Championships provides competitive opportunities for players of all standards and Cheltenham’s Aldred-Tow will feature in Monday’s women’s main draw consolation singles final, having booked her match against Fisher during Saturday’s play.
However, Abbeymead’s Paul Arnold narrowly missed out on the chance to feature in Monday’s men’s B Division consolation singles final. Arnold took the opening set of his semi-final on Sunday against Jonathan Fisher, but Fisher fought back to eventually win 3-6, 6-2, 6-1.
The 2011 National Wheelchair Tennis Championships is supported by The Tennis Foundation and the National Wheelchair Tennis Association of Great Britain, as well as Babolat and Highland Spring.
Play begins, once again, at 9.30am on Bank Holiday Monday, 30th May. Entry is free to all spectators.
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