While many people around the world marked 200 days to go until the London 2012 Paralympics on Saturday, Nottinghamshire’s David Phillipson was among four of Britain’s leading wheelchair tennis players showcasing their skills in a demonstration at Great Britain's Davis Cup tie at Braehead Arena.
Phillipson partnered Marc McCarroll as they took on two of their counterparts from the Tennis Foundation’s Wheelchair Tennis Performance Programme, Scots Gordon Reid and Kevin Simpson, in a ten-minute timed session before Britain's Davis Cup doubles rubber against the Slovak Republic.
The English duo of Phillipson and McCarroll came out on top 11-9 before all four players now return to competing for ranking points until the end of the London 2012 qualification period in May.
“It was a great opportunity to showcase the sport on that kind of stage and in front of lots of spectators,” said Phillipson. “The atmosphere was great and it was very exciting to be involved. Now it’s back to playing for the all-important ranking points for qualification for London 2012.”
Team Leader for British Wheelchair Tennis at the 2012 Paralympic Games, Paul Regan, added: "In the middle of a very busy training and tournament programme, it was great for some of our best players to come and show the Glasgow crowd just what an entertaining sport wheelchair tennis is.
"Wheelchair tennis tickets have already sold out at London 2012, which means there will be huge crowds cheering the players on at their purpose-built venue Eton Manor."
British players are currently competing on the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour for the chance to represent their country at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, with all four wheelchair tennis players that were in Glasgow having recently returned from a series of four tournaments in Australia.
Phillipson began his season by beating British No. 1 Reid in his first match of the year at the Queensland Open, where he went on to reach the men’s singles semi-finals before also going to contest three close sets with French world No. 9 Frederic Cattaneo in Adelaide and Sydney and reaching the men’s doubles semi-finals at the Adelaide Open.
Phillipson returned from Australia as the British No. 3 and world No. 20, just one ranking place behind McCarroll and both players, along with Reid, are now set to contest the North Counties Tournament in Sunderland, Britain’s second world ranking tournament of 2012, in two weeks’ time.