Dahnon Ward heads British title charge as wheelchair tennis enters second week in Bolton
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Dahnon Ward became the first Brit to win the Bolton Indoor WT 100 wheelchair tennis tournament, after the current British No.5 beat Australian second seed Anderson Parker 6-0, 7-5 at Bolton Arena.
Ward, one of three British wheelchair players to claim silverware at the first of two back-to-back international tournaments at Bolton Arena, recovered from 5-3 down in the second set to remain unbeaten in three career meetings with Anderson and claim his first singles title since October 2024.
A former US Open junior singles champion, 20-year-old Ward said, “It’s a bit of a relief to finally play well here, because it’s been a while since I’ve found some form in Bolton. I’m really pleased with myself.
"I’ve had had three three-set matches over the last five days and while I started the tournament playing the ball, I finally figured out it was all about my mentality. Today, I knew that if I returned well there was no way he was going to hurt me.”
Monday’s penultimate day of play saw Ward’s fellow Paris Paralympian Abbie Breakwell win the women’s doubles title alongside her American partner Maylee Phelps. In a title decider featuring two Brits, Breakwell and Phelps beat top seeds Cornelia Oosthuizen and Maayan Zikri 6-4, 7-6(4) to wrap up their second doubles title as a partnership.
Meanwhile, current British No.4 Andrew Penney’s first-time partnership with Anderson proved to be a huge success in the men’s doubles tournament. The English, Australian fourth seeds completed a series of three consecutive straight sets wins with a 7-6(4), 6-2 victory over third seeds Conner Stroud of the USA and Shogo Takano of Japan to claim the title, Penney’s first of the year.
In the other draws, Pauline Deroulede claimed the women’s singles title after beating Charlotte Fairbank 6-2, 6-3 in an all-French final, while fellow top seed Benjamin Wenzel of Australia claimed the quad singles title after beating Canada’s Shawn Courchesne 6-3, 6-1.
Following Tuesday’s WT 100 singles finals, the WT 175 Bolton Indoor tournament got underway on Wednesday 18 February, with Ward aiming for back-to-back men’s titles, British No.1 Lucy Shuker leading the home entry in the women’s singles and defending champion and British No.2 Greg Slade returning to Bolton Arena after winning the quad singles at both corresponding tournaments in 2025.
2025 Wimbledon doubles finalist Slade is one of two current top 10-ranked players set to contest the WT 175 tournament.
For updates from Bolton Indoor WT 100 and WT 175 tournaments, follow the LTA Wheelchair Tennis X account or Facebook account.
