31/08/14
Andy Lapthorne finished runner-up in the quad singles at the final Super Series event of 2014 after a 6-3, 6-4 loss to American world No. 1 David Wagner.
It's the second successive Super Series event at which world No. 3 Lapthorne has been runner-up after he also reached the final of July's British Open, and also his second successive runners-up berth in St. Louis after he also played Wagner in the 2013 final. Lapthorne will now be one of three Brits, along with Gordon Reid and Jordanne Whiley, set to contest the wheelchair tennis competition at the US Open in New York on 4th to 7th September.
US Open USTA Wheelchair Championships Draws
30/08/14
Jordanne Whiley and Andy Lapthorne both finished with doubles runners-up honours with their respective South African partners on the penultimate day of play in St. Louis.
Second seeds Whiley and Kgothatso Montjane made a promising start in their attempt to retain the women’s doubles title, but in a rematch of the 2013 final they slipped to a 76(2) 62 loss to Dutch top seeds Jiske Griffioen and Aniek van Koot on this occasion.
Lapthorne and Lucas Sithole also played a rematch of their 2013 semifinal against American top seeds Nick Taylor and David Wagner, but once again three-time Paralympic gold medallists Taylor and Wagner came out on top as they clinched their fifth title in St. Louis in the last six years 75 67(3) 62.
Lapthorne will now face Wagner in the quad singles final on Sunday’s last day of play.
29/08/14
Andy Lapthorne reached the quad singles and doubles finals as Jordanne Whiley moved into the women’s double final for the second successive year in St. Louis.
World No. 3 Lapthorne beat South African world No. 2 Lucas Sithole 6-2, 7-6(5) after a tense end to their quad singles semi-final, with the Brit eventually securing victory after having held a 5-1 second set lead. In a rematch of the 2013 final in St. Louis, Lapthorne will now play American world No. 1 and defending champion David Wagner for the title on Sunday.
Lapthorne and Sithole later paired up to reach Saturday’s quad doubles final. The second seeds dominated from the outset against Canada’s Gary Luker and Robert Shaw to seal a 6-0, 6-0 victory. Lapthorne and Sithole will now face top seeds Nick Taylor and David Wagner, the defending champions.
The women’s doubles final will be a rematch of the 2013 title decider after Whiley and South Africa’s Kgothatso Montjane continued their title defence with a 6-3, 6-2 semi-final victory over American duo Emmy Kaiser and Dana Mathewson 6-3, 6-2. Dutch top seeds Griffioen and Aniek van Koot won the other semi-final against Lucy Shuker and Germany’s Sabine Ellerbrock 6-2, 6-2, but there was better news for Shuker in the women’s consolation singles as she sealed victory in the event with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Kaiser.
28/08/14
Andy Lapthorne and Jamie Burdekin moved into the quad singles semi-finals as Lapthorne, Jordanne Whiley and Lucy Shuker also secured doubles semi-final berths on the third day in St. Louis.
Both Lapthorne and Burdekin came through tough quad singles quarterfinals against American opposition, world No.3 Lapthorne defeating eighth seed Bryan Barten 7-5, 7-6(2) and world No.5 Burdekin earned a 6-4, 6-4 victory over former champion and world No.6 Nick Taylor. Lapthorne meats South Africa’s world No. 2 Lucas Sithole in the semifinals, with Burdekin playing American world No.1 David Wagner and an all British final still a possibility.
Lapthorne also partnered Sithole to the quad doubles semifinals, the second seeds beating all-American duo Barten and Greg Hasterok 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 ahead of facing Canada’s Gary Luker and Rob Shaw for a place in the final.
Second seeds Whiley and Kgothatso Montjane made a fine start to the defence of their women’s doubles title, beating Marjolein Buis of the Netherlands and Japan’s Yui Kamiji 63 64. Whiley and Montjane now play Americans Emmy Kaiser and Dana Mathewson for a place in the final. An all-British-final remains a possibility after Shuker and Germany’s Sabine Ellerbrock swept to a 6-0, 6-1 win over Cabrillana and Martinez to set up a semifinal against Dutch top seeds Jiske Griffioen and Aniek van Koot, the duo that Whiley and Montjane beat in last year’s final.
While Shuker secured her second win in successive days in the women’s consolation singles, Whiley saw her women’s singles campaign come to an end despite an admirable effort against world no. 1 Kamiji. Whiley, who will partner Kamiji at the upcoming US Open Grand Slam, took the opening set of their singles quarter-final in St. Louis before Kamiji advanced 5-7, 6-1, 6-4.
Gordon Reid also saw his men’s singles and doubles bids come to an end at the quarter-final stage. Reid slipped to a 6-3, 7-5 loss to Japanese world No.9 Takashi Sanada in the last eight of the singles, while Sanada and Australia’s Adam Kellerman beat Reid and Maikel Scheffers 6-3, 6-2 in the men’s doubles quarter-finals.
27/08/14
Lucy Shuker was the only Brit in action on a rain-affected second day in St. Louis as the British No. 2 began her women’s consolation singles by beating American Elizabeth Williams 6-0, 6-0.
With much of the first two days of completion being played in high temperatures, a thunderstorm in St. Louis on Wednesday afternoon led to the quad singles quarter-finals and all the opening doubles matches being put back by a day.
When the doubles events do get underway Jordanne Whiley and South Africa’s Kgothatso Montjane begin their women’s doubles title defence against Marjolein Buisf the Netherlands and Yui Kamiji of Japan, while Shuker and Germany’s Sabine Ellerbrock face South American duo Macarena Cabrillana and Johana Martinez.
Gordon Reid and Dutchman Maikel Scheffers play Australia’s Adam Kellerman and Japan’s Takashi Sanada in the men’s doubles, while Reid will meet eighth seed Sanada in the men’s singles quarter-finals. Andy Lapthone and South Africa’s Lucas Sithole meet American duo Bryan Barten and Greg Hasterok in the quad doubles, with Barten having won through to become Lapthorne’s quarter-final singles opponent.
26/08/14
Gordon Reid, Jordanne Whiley, Jamie Burdekin and Andy Lapthorne all earned comfortable straight sets victories to book their places in the last eight of their respective men’s singles, women’s singles and quad singles events on the opening day of play in St. Louis.
World No.3 Reid beat American David Eads 6-0, 6-0 to book a men’s singles quarter-final against either eight seed Takashi Sanada of Japan or Daniel Rodrigues of Brazil.
World No. 5 Whiley swept past American Dana Mathewson 6-2, 6-0 to set up a showdown against her Grand Slam doubles partner Yui Kamiji after world No. 1 Kamiji defeated Whiley’s London 2012 bronze medal-winning doubles partner Lucy Shuker 6-3, 6-1 in their women’s singles first round match. Shuker will now start her women’s consolation singles on the second day of play, when the doubles events also get underway.
Burdekin beat USA-based Frenchman Francois Trawalter 6-1, 6-3, setting up a quad singles quarter-final against former champion and fifth seed Nick Taylor of the USA. The world No. 5 and fourth seed is joined in the last eight by Lapthorne, who defeated Brazil’s Ymanitu Silva 6-1, 6-1. World No.3 Lapthorne will play the winner of Wednesday’s match between Americans Bryan Barten and Steven Baxter for a place in the semi-finals.
25/08/14
Five players on the Tennis Foundation’s Wheelchair Tennis Performance Programme line up for the sixth and final Super Series tournament of the year, with world No.3 Gordon Reid carrying GB hopes in the men’s singles and doubles after starting 2014 by winning his first Super Series title singles title in Sydney and also adding the men’s doubles title with Dutchman Maikel Scheffers. Reid has also reached Super Series singles finals at the South Africa Open and the British Open this season.
Sydney also brought a second Super Series doubles title for Lucy Shuker. Shuker and Jordanne Whlley, doubles runners-up at last month’s British Open, are drawn in the same quarter of the women’s singles draw as Japan’s world No. 1 in St. Louis this week, while Whiley renews last year’s title winning doubles partnership with South Africa’s Kgothatso Montjane.
A fine season for British players in the most important six tournaments outside of the Grand Slams also includes Super Series quad doubles titles for Andy Lapthorne, Antony Cotterill and Jamie Burdekin. World No.3 Lapthorne, runner-up in the quad singles at last month’s British Open, and world No.5 Burdekin, winner of the quad doubles at the British Open partnering American David Wagner, bid for more singles and doubles success in St. Louis and are drawn in separate halves of the singles draw.