Gold medal honours were spread across players from North and South Wales, the South West and South East and the East Midlands as Wrexham Tennis Centre hosted the third of the Tennis Foundation’s four new Learning Disability Regional Series events in 2014.
A total of 24 players from across England and Wales contested a series of singles and doubles round-robin groups, each group consisting of players of like tennis ability, with Nottingham’s Matthew Chilvers and Michael Clarke dominating the men’s Division 1 singles to win the gold and silver medals, respectively, before adding the gold medal in the men’s Division doubles when finishing unbeaten.
Chilvers beat Clarke 6-1 in their deciding singles match as both players finished ahead of Deal’s Adam Brownsword, a gold and silver medallist in his respective singles events at the previous two Regional Series tournaments in Welwyn Garden City and Nottingham.
After winning singles gold medals in his events in Welwyn and Nottingham, Deal’s Connor Power had to settle for silver in the men’s Division 2 singles in Wrexham as South Wales athlete Joshua Kerr took the gold medal after overcoming Power 6-3.
Gloucester’s Robert Fisher ensured back-to-back singles gold medals. After winning gold in his event in Nottingham, Fisher won the men’s Division 3 singles in Wrexham, edging past Deal’s Michael Goggins 6-4 in the decisive match in their group.
The gold medals in the men’s Division 4 and Division 5 singles were both decided in tie-breaks as Wrexham’s Damon Hughes secured a home win in Division 4. Hughes edged out Nottingham’s Alex Hopkinson 7-6(5) to finish unbeaten with three wins form his three matches, while there was another close contest in the match that decided the bonze medal as Christopher Burke beat fellow Welshman Stephen Parry 7-5.
In Division 5 Wrexham’s Dylan Wilkin had to settle for the silver medal after playing two tie-breaks in his three matches.
Paul Griffin took the Division 5 gold medal back to the South East of England after securing a narrow 7-6(4) victory over Wilkin, who sealed the silver medal after winning another exciting contest against fellow Wrexham player and bronze medallists James Stidolph 7-6(3).
There were three more gold medals for Wrexham-based players as Claire Simms dropped just two games in her two matches to win the women’s singles ahead of silver medallist Jane Weatherhead. Simms also partnered Stidolph to win the mixed doubles in one of two events that saw Wrexham players win gold and silver medals.
Simms and Stidolph remained unbeaten in both their mixed doubles matches, while Damon and Helen Hughes earned themselves the silver medal after a 6-2 win over Griffin and Weatherhead.
Meanwhile, Burke and Parry beat fellow Wrexham players Stidolph and Wilkin 4-1, 5-4(1) to win the men’s Division 3 doubles gold medal after a second set tie-break.
The men’s Division 2 doubles gold medal went back to Kent as Goggins and Power eased to 6-0 wins in both their round-robin matches.
Scotstoun Tennis Centre in Glasgow will host the fourth Regional Series tournament on 13th and 14th September ahead of the Tennis Foundation’s National Learning Disability Tennis Event in Nottingham from 31st October to 2nd November.