18/01/2012Jamie Burdekin has won the quad title at the Melbourne Open on a day when British players picked up three titles on the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour.
Louise Hunt and Jordanne Whiley came through a tough match to claim the women's doubles while Marc McCarroll and Gordon Reid won the men's doubles title courtesy of a walkover.
World No. 6 Burdekin, playing in his first tournament of the season this week, won the points that mattered to edge out South African world No. 10 Lucas Sithole 6-3, 6-4 in the quad singles final. The Brit won the fourth ITF 2 singles title of his career without dropping a set throughout the tournament.
In the women’s doubles Hunt and Whiley upset the tournament top seeds for the second week in succession as they followed up the Adelaide Open title they secured last Friday. Third seeds Hunt and Whiley beat Japanese top seeds Yui Kamiji and Yuko Okabe 6-4, 3-6, (10-5) to secure their second title of 2012.
After reaching their second men’s doubles final in three tournaments, McCarroll and Reid left Melbourne with their first title of 2012 after being awarded a walkover. McCarroll and Reid had been due to take on top seeds Tom Egberink and Ronald Vink, but the Dutch partnership had to withdraw from the contest after Vink injured a hand in the earlier men’s singles final.
Alex Jewitt began the final day of competition still with a possible two matches to play in the men’s second draw singles, but third seed Jewitt lost out to Brazilian top seed Carlos Santos 7-6(2) 4-6 6-3 in his semi-final, having finished runner-up to Santos in Adelaide last week.
The Tennis Foundation's Head of Player Performance, Geraint Richards, said: "It's been a solid start to the season for many of our players out here in Australia and to end the run of three ITF 2 Series tournaments with a singles and two doubles titles is very satisfying. Jamie, Gordon and Marc have all gained their first titles of 2012 today, Louise and Jordanne have done very well to win back-to-back doubles titles and Jamie, Jordanne and Gordon have all beaten world top 10 opposition this week in their singles events.
"It's an encouraging way for us to now head into the first Super Series tournament of the week in Sydney, which starts in two days time. There's a big week ahead for those playing in Sydney and as Andy Lapthorne and Peter Norfolk also build up to next week's Australian Open."Full draw sheets17/01/2012British players have continued their winning streak at the Melbourne Open, with Jamie Burdekin having reached the quad singles final, Louise Hunt and Jordanne Whiley earning their place in their second successive women’s doubles final and Marc McCarroll and Gordon Reid setting up a men's doubles final.
Burdekin battled through the warm and windy conditions to win Tuesday’s quad singles semi-final against Japan’s Mitsuteru Moroishi 6-0, 7-6 (5) and will now face South African third seed Lucas Sithole in the final of his first tournament of the year. However, Burdekin and fellow Brit John Parfitt saw their quad doubles challenge end in the last four after they lost 5-7, 7-6(4), (10-7) to Moroishi and his compatriot Shota Kawano.
Whiley gained her second win in successive days over a world top 10 player as she defeated German world No. 5 Sabine Ellerbrock 6-3, 7-5 in her quarter-final. Later in the day Whiley faced world No. 1 Esther Vergeer but, like many before her, the Brit was unable to find a way past the Dutch player, who extended her winning streak to 436 matches after a 6-0, 6-0 victory.
Hunt and Whiley put up another fine doubles performance in a repeat of their victory over Germany’s Katharina Kruger and Kgothatso Montjane in last Friday’s Adelaide open final. The third seeds this week, Hunt and Whiley beat the second seeds to book their place in the final against Japanese top seeds Yui Kamiji and Yuko Okabe.
Reid also attempted to beat his second world top 10 opponent in successive days in the men’s singles semi-finals. But, after the British No. 1 powered though the second set of his match against Dutch world No. 4 Ronald Vink, Vink took control of the decider to progress 7-5, 0-6, 6-0.
McCarroll and Reid had more success in the men’s doubles, reaching their second final in three tournaments this year after defeating French duo Frederic Cattaneo and Frederic Cazeaudumec 2-6, 6-1, (10-4). The British third seeds will now face Tom Egberink and Ronald Vink for the title.
British No. 4 Alex Jewitt still has the chance of reaching another final in Melbourne after winning his men’s second draw quarter-final against Brazilian Daniel Rodrigues 6-3, 6-4. Third seed Jewitt will face Brazil’s Carlos Santos in his semi-final and bid to avenge his loss to Santos in the final in Adelaide.
However, Kevin Simpson was unable to avenge his loss to Japan’s Mamoru Iwata in Adelaide last week, with Iwata winning their quarter-final 6-1, 6-4.Full draw sheets16/01/2012Gordon Reid and Jordanne Whiley both beat world top 10 players on the second day of the Melbourne Open to progress to the men’s singles quarter-finals and women’s singles semi-finals respectively.
Meanwhile, Jamie Burdekin advanced to the quad singles semi-finals and Alex Jewitt and Kevin Simpson reached the men’s second draw singles quarter-finals.
Reid beat world No 9 and fourth seed Frederic Cattaneo of France for the fourth time in seven matches as the British No. 1 progressed 6-1, 7-6(6) to book his place in the men’s semi-finals against Dutch world No. 4 Ronald Vink.
Meanwhile, Whiley met Japan’s world No. 9 Yui Kamiji for the first time on the NEC Tour, edging past the world’s top ranked junior and sixth seed 6-0, 4-6, 7-5 to earn her place in the last eight against German fourth seed Sabine Ellerbrock.
Burdekin made a winning start to his 2012 campaign to move into the semi-finals of the quad singles. After his first round bye, world No. 6 and top seed Burdekin was 5-3 and 40-0 up in his quarter-final against Shota Kawano when the Japanese player was forced to retire.
However, John Parfitt was unable to set up what could have been an all-British semi-final after he lost his quarter-final to Japan’s Mitsuteru Moroishi 6-4, 6-2.
Jewitt and Simpson both secured straight sets victories to reach the last eight in the second draw. Third seed Jewitt defeated Switzerland’s Herbert Keller 6-2, 6-2, while in the other half of the draw ninth seed Simpson overcame Brazil’s Mauricio Pomme 6-2, 7-6(5).
A British partnership was guaranteed a place in the men’s double semi-finals, with Marc McCarroll and Reid drawn to face Alex Jewitt and David Phillipson in their opening match and it was McCarroll and Reid who had the edge in a close match to win 7-5, 7-5 to book their place in the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, after their first round bye, third seeds Louise Hunt and Whiley began their bid to follow up last week’s Adelaide Open title with a confident 6-0, 6-4 victory over Ellerbrock and Japan’s Miho Nijo. Hunt and Whiley now have a tough semi-final as they take on Germany’s Katharina Kruger and Kgothatso Montjane, the partnership they beat in a deciding set in Friday’s women’s doubles final in Adelaide.
Having lost out to Whiley in the first round of the women’s singles, Hunt also advanced to the quarter-finals of the consolation singles after defeating Chinese Taipai’s Yi-Shan Wu 6-2, 6-3.
While Burdekin and Parfitt have a bye into the semi-finals of the quad doubles, it was a busy day with mixed fortunes on Monday for Simpson in the men’s second draw doubles. The Scot and his Swedish partner Niclas Rodhborn defeated Patrice Meyer and Cedric Mocellin 6-1, 6-1 to reach the quarter-finals, but the third seeds then lost out to Swiss fifth seeds Yann Avanthey and Daniel Pellegrina 6-1, 6-0.Full draw sheets15/01/2012Jordanne Whiley, Gordon Reid, Alex Jewitt and Kevin Simpson all progressed in their respective singles events on the opening day of the Melbourne Open, the third and last of the three ITF 2 Series tournaments in Australia this month.
After partnering fellow Brit Louise Hunt to win the women's doubles at the Adelaide Open at the end of last week, Whiley found herself drawn against close friend Hunt in the first round of the women's singles in Melbourne, with the British No. 2 beating the British No. 3 6-2, 6-0. Hunt and Whiley will renew their doubles partnership later in the week.
British No. 1 Reid had the only first round success of Britain's top three ranked players in the men's singles after being edged out by Frenchman Frederic Cazeaudumec 6-3, 7-5.
David Phillipson, a finalist in Melbourne in 2010, had a tough first round draw against Japanese world No. 8 Satoshi Saida, with Saida advancing 7-6(3), 6-2.
In Melbourne two years ago both Phillipson and Marc McCarroll lost out to Dutchman Ronald Vink in the semi-finals and final respectively. World No. 4 Vink proved to be a tough opponent for British No.3 McCarroll again this year and although McCarroll managed to take Vink to a deciding set, the 2010 champion progressed 0-6, 7-6(4), 6-1.
After just one singles loss in his first two tournaments of 2012, British No. 4 Alex Jewitt again made a confident start to his men's second draw singles challenge in Melbourne. Jewitt, the winner at the Queensland Open and the runner-up in Adelaide, beat Frenchman Thierry Vuillet 6-0, 6-0, while fellow Brit Kevin Simpson also eased to past French opposition as he defeated Patrice Meyer 6-0, 6-3.
Britain's Jamie Burdekin and John Parfitt will begin their challenges in the quad singles on Monday after first round byes.