15/08/14
Alfie Hewett reached his fifth men’s singles final of 2014 on the penultimate day of play in Wroclaw as David Phillipson finished runner-up in the men’s doubles at the Polish tournament for the second successive year.
Fourth seed Hewett led his all-British semifinal against top seed Marc McCarroll 7-6(6), 5-2 when British No. 2 McCarroll retired. Sixteen-year-old Hewett, the world No. 1 ranked junior, will now play Australian second seed and defending champion Adam Kellerman for the very first time when they meet in Saturday’s final.
Fourth seeds Phillipson and Stefan Olsson of Sweden put up a fine effort against top seeds Kellerman and Martin Legner of Austria in the men’s doubles final, but Kellerman and Legner just had the edge to go on and lift the title 7-5, 7-5.
Wroclaw Cup Draws
14/08/14
A British player is guaranteed to be in the men’s singles final in Wroclaw after Marc McCarroll and Alfie Hewett won their respective quarter-finals in straight sets, while David Phillipson moved into the men’s doubles final partnering Sweden’s Stefan Olsson.
Top seed McCarroll recorded a 6-2, 7-5 victory over seventh seed Thomas Vinatier of France, while fourth seed Hewett beat Tadeusz Kruszelnicki for the second time in a month as he secured a 6-3, 6-4 win over his Polish opponent, a former two-time champion in Wroclaw. McCarroll and Hewett will now meet for the second time this season.
The closest of the singles quarter-finals saw Phillipson’s quest for a place in his second successive final in Wroclaw come to an end after he was edged out by his Swedish doubles partner and former world No. 2 Olsson 7-6(8), 7-5.
However, fourth seeds Phillipson and Olsson later combined forces to beat second seeds McCarroll and Kruszelnicki 6-0, 6-3 in their doubles semi-final.
But hopes of having two Brits in the men’s doubles final faded after top seeds Adam Kellerman of Australia and Martin Legner of Austria defeated Hewett and Dutchman Ricky Molier 5-7, 6-4, (10-4) after a deciding championship tie-break. Third seeds Hewett and Molier had been chasing their second successive men’s doubles title after victory last week at the Trofeo della Mole in Turin.
13/08/14
Marc McCarroll, David Phillipson and Alfie Hewett all reached the men’s singles quarter-finals and men’s doubles semi-finals as the three Brits began their challenges in Wroclaw.
Top seed McCarroll will play French seventh seed Thomas Vinatier in the last eight after his 6-2, 6-4 victory over Germany’s Sven Hiller 6-2, 6-4. Phillipson, last year’s runner-up and this year’s third seed, will take on his doubles partner Stefan Olsson of Sweden for a place in the semi-finals after defeating Austria’s Josef Riegler 6-2, 6-2. Hewett, the fourth seed, meets Polish home favourite Tadeusz Kruszelnicki next after easing past the Czech Republic’s Michal Stefanu 6-1, 6-2.
A British finalist is guaranteed in the men’s doubles, with McCarroll and Phillipson both set to be on opposite sides of the next in the last four. Second seeds McCarroll and Kruszelnicki will meet Phillipson and Olsson after defeating Czech duo Stefanu and Peter Utikal 63 60. Fourth seeds Phillipson and Olsson opened their doubles campaign with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over the all-Polish partnership of Kamil Fabisiak and Piotr Jaroszewski.
A final featuring two Brits is still a possibility after Hewett and Dutchman Ricky Molier secured a 6-1, 6-3 win against their Polish opponents Albin Batycki and Krzysztof Brezyna. Third seeds Hewett and Molier, who are seeking their second successive doubles title after winning last week’s Trofeo della Mole in Turin, still await the result of the remaining quarter-final before discovering their semi-final opponents.
11/08/14
Marc McCarroll, David Phillipson and Alfie Hewett return to Wroclaw a year on from Britain’s No.2 No.3 and No.4 ranked players all featuring in the men’s double final in 2013, with McCarroll and Hewett winning the title then and Phillipson finishing runner-up partnering Australia’s Adam Kellerman.
Phillipson was also runner-up to Kellerman in the men’s singles last year in Poland, while Hewett and McCarroll were both singles quarter-finalists. All three Brits are among the top four seeded players this year alongside Kellerman and all have first round byes.
Hewett will be attempting to win his fourth doubles title in as many weeks after victories in the men’s doubles at the German Open, the Austrian Open and the Trofeo della Mole in Italy.