James Story lifts career-best title while Hamish Stewart & Connor Thomson seal doubles victory at Lexus British Pro Series Sheffield
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This weekend saw a clean sweep of titles for British tennis players at the Lexus British Pro Series Sheffield, with home favourites sealing both the singles and doubles crowns at Graves Sports Centre.
In the singles, eigth seed James Story claimed a career-best title as he overcame fellow Brit Anton Matusevich 6-2 3-6 7-6(4) in Saturday’s final.
Story came into the final in good form, having not dropped a set all week in a run which included a win over top seed Clement Chidekh in the quarter-finals. With Matusevich only dropping one set on his way to the final, a close affair was always likely, and so it proved. After claiming a set each, the deciding set went all the way to a tiebreak, and after a double fault gave Story the first minibreak, he never let it slip, going on to seal a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(4) win.
Speaking after the win, Story said, “The theme of the week was full commitment and don’t have any regrets, and that was in my mind going into the tiebreak. This is my first M25 title so I’m really happy.”
In the doubles, Hamish Stewart and Connor Thomson ensured a clean sweep for the home favourites as they took down fellow Brit Mark Whitehouse and Frenchman Chidekh.
Heading into the final, Stewart and Thomson were arguably the outsiders against the number top seeds who were yet to drop a set all week. However, after failing to take their first three match points in the deciding set, Stewart went on to seal the title on the fourth with an ace to wrap up a 6-3, 6-4 win.
Thomson, who was appearing in his eighth consecutive ITF doubles final, said after the match “It’s been a hell of a couple of months, I’ve been very lucky to play with (Hamish) this week, he’s been playing amazing, helping me to get through a couple of tight ones.”
Stewart, who had lost in his singles semi-final earlier in the day, added, “It’s been a good week. It was a shame in the singles, but it felt really good to come back in the doubles.”
LTA Tournament Director Sarah Wooding spoke following the conclusion of the singles final, saying, “We have had an enjoyable week at Graves Health and Sports Centre, culminating in a superb three-set singles final which was much enjoyed by the assembled spectators. It was great to see British players competing in both finals, and congratulations to James, Hamish and Connor for taking home the titles.’’
This week, the men and women come together for the Lexus British Pro Series Glasgow at Scotstoun Tennis Centre, a combined W75/M25 event that is the final international event of the year in Britain.
International tournaments such as the Lexus British Pro Series Sheffield are part of the LTA’s Performance Competitions Calendar (PCC) which provides significantly enhanced opportunities for British players at each age and stage of the performance player pathway on home soil.
View the full 2025 LTA Performance Competitions Calendar below:
