Peter Norfolk’s reign as undisputed king of Paralympic Quad Singles came to an end today when he his suffered his first singles defeat at the three Games to feature the competition.
Norfolk, nicknamed the Quadfather, won all his matches as he struck Wheelchair Tennis gold at both the Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games.
But that impressive record was brought to an end by Israel’s Shraga Weinberg in the quarter-finals on no. 1 court at Eton Manor.
It looked like business as usual for the no. 3 seed as he took the opening set 6-3 and then broke Weinberg’s serve in the opening game of set two.
But the unseeded Israeli player then won four games in a row before Norfolk battled back to level the set at 5-5. It was Weinberg who held his nerve and his serve to go 6-5 up and then levelled the match by breaking the Norfolk serve to secure the set 7-5.
The decisive set was more straightforward for Weinberg – he took it 6-0 to book a place in the semi-finals at Norfolk’s expense.
But Norfolk, from Alton in Hampshire, was magnanimous in defeat. “I’d like to wish Shraga good luck in the next round,” he said.
“I lost my grip from middle of the second set and I couldn’t get the ball in the court. Once my grip has gone, it’s hard to make the right contact with the ball.
“Shraga played pretty well and made few mistakes,” he added. “He just kept getting the ball back in the court. I’m disappointed I won’t be able to defend my title.”
Norfolk still has the opportunity to make history tomorrow (Wednesday) when he and Andy Lapthorne could become the first GB pair to win a Paralympic Games Wheelchair Tennis doubles tournament.
The Britons, who are top seeds, face no. 2 seeds Nicholas Taylor and David Wagner in the Quad Doubles gold medal match. Taylor and Wagner have dominated the doubles tournament in the way that Norfolk has the singles, winning gold in both Athens and Beijing.
“I’ll be depressed tonight but I have another big match tomorrow with Andy, but we’ll be ready for the match,” said Norfolk. “Tomorrow is a different day and I'm looking forward to playing the Americans.”
Share