The National Final of the inaugural Dan Maskell Team Tennis event for wheelchair tennis will took place on Saturday 31st October and Sunday 1st November at the Oxstalls Tennis Centre in Gloucester. The four Finalists are the Gosling Tornadoes, Loughborough Legends, The Shrews and Team Wales.
Team Wales finished runners up in the final weekend losing out by a percentage count back to the Shrews. Well done to Dave Liddiard Team Manager and Team Wales; Martin French, Tony Heslop, Debbie Brazier, Ashley Davis, Tony Tibbs and Shaun Swetman.
Funded and organised by The Dan Maskell Tennis Trust (DMTT) and supported by The Tennis Foundation, the event is the first of its kind in the UK to encourage recreational wheelchair tennis players to take part in a national competition. Open to male and female players aged over 14, more than 60 players took part in the event over the last four months, representing teams from England and Wales, with over 70 rubbers played. All finalists will receive a participation certificate from the DMTT as well as a medal. The Tennis Foundation supplied event t-shirts and hoodies and Wilson is the Official Ball supplier.
Gilly English, Executive Director of the DMTT said, “Recreational wheelchair tennis players have been looking for a competitive event like this for some time and we are delighted the pilot has been such a success. We hope to extend the wheelchair tennis event and develop the format for other disabilities.”
The Tennis Foundation’s Disability Tournament Manager, Liz Terry said, “The Dan Maskell Team Tennis pilot has been a great opportunity for recreational wheelchair players to try out playing in a competition but to do so in a friendly team environment. We are excited to develop this concept further in the future and greatly appreciate the hard work of the Dan Maskell Tennis Trust getting this format up and running.”
Breakdown of results can be found here.