15/04/14
Steve Metcalfe secured a local West Country victory at the 2014 Taunton Wheelchair Tennis Tournament when the Bristolian claimed the main draw singles title, while Lynn Broughton won the D Division singles and Antony Evans clinched victory in the C Division on the opening weekend of the Tennis Foundation Wheelchair Tennis Summer Development Series.
Metcalfe, the 2011 champion and 2012 runner-up, opened his challenge with a tense victory, coming from a set down to eventually beat Stephan Shortland 3-6, 6-3, (10-2) after a championship tie-break.
While Metcalfe dropped his opening set of the tournament, top seed Steve Crompton, Tony Tibbs and Martin French all advanced in straight sets, with Crompton then winning the points that mattered to defeat Tibbs 6-4, 6-4. Metcalfe had a much more comfortable semi-final, beating French 6-1, 6-2, but the final produced another closely fought contest as Metcalfe prevailed 6-3, 7-5.
Broughton, the winner of the women’s singles at the 2013 National Development Series Finals in December, clinched another title when she dropped just one game across her two matches in the B Division singles against Sonia Hopper and Ryan Stevens, in one of two mixed sex events.
Lauren Currie made a bold attempt at securing a tournament double for female players when she advanced to the C Division singles final, having comfortably won both her round-robin matches in her qualification group.
In the other qualification group Evans had a much tougher route to the final after playing two tie-breaks against Mark Blackler. However, it was Evans who had the final say as he won the deciding championships tie-break for a 5-3, 4-5(3), (10-5) win that saw him finish top of his group. After that Evans dropped just two games in the final, beating Currie 4-1, 4-1.
Broughton gained her second title of the tournament when pairing up with Crompton to win the main draw doubles, while after narrowly missing out on a place in the C Division singles final, Blackler partnered Sonia Hooper to win the C Division doubles.
To download the complete Tennis Foundation Wheelchair Tennis Development Series Calendar for 2014, please click here (PDF 50 KB, opens in new window)
Download the poster for Tennis Foundation Wheelchair Tennis Development Series 2014 (PDF 2.5 MB, opens in new window)
11/04/14
Southampton’s Steve Crompton, winner of the men’s event in the Tennis Foundation Wheelchair Tennis Development Series in 2012, is among the entries for the main draw singles at the Taunton Wheelchair Tennis Tournament, one of two events taking place on the opening weekend of the Tennis Foundation Wheelchair Tennis Summer Development Series.
Steve Metcalfe, who was the champion in Taunton in 2011, is also among the leeading enttries.
Swindon’s Lynn Broughton, winner of the women’s singles at the 2013 Tennis Foundation National Development Series Finals last December, is also set to compete, with Taunton offering a range of events to provide opportunities for developing players of varying abilities.
