Brits Dominate to Claim Five Titles in Hilton Head

Tennis Foundation performance programme players Gordon Reid, Lucy Shuker, Antony Cotterill and Adam Field won five of a possible six titles over the weekend at the PTR Championships, an ITF 2 Series event on the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour, on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, USA.

World No. 9 Reid remains unbeaten in singles and doubles at the tournament since 2009 after the British No. 1 dropped just three games in total against Frenchmen Yoann Quilliou and Frederic Cazeaudumec en route to the men’s singles final. Top seed Reid then beat his doubles partner, second seed and former world No. 1 Stephen Welch, 6-4, 6-2 to win his fourth successive PTR Championships title.

Reid and Welch also justified top seeding in the men’s doubles, beating second seeds Steve Baldwin of the USA and Cazeaudumec 6-4, 6-2 in the final.

“This tournament has provided me with some great memories over the last four years and to stay unbeaten in four years in singles and doubles is something I am very proud of,” said Reid.

“Along with my performances at the Paralympics, it’s great preparation for next week’s US Open Super Series tournament in St Louis.”

Shuker, who won a doubles bronze medal at the London 2012 Paralympics Games, lost just four games en route to the women’s singles final before beating her German doubles partner and second seed Katharina Kruger 6-4, 6-2 on Sunday to win the title for the third time in four years, having finished runner-up last year.

Tops seeds Shuker and Kruger gave up just two games in both their women’s doubles semi-final and final, with Shuker sharing in her fourth successive doubles title on Hilton Head after the duo beat second seeds Francisca Mardones of Chile and Jessica Sporte of the USA 6-0, 6-2 in the final.

“After missing out in three close sets in last year’s singles final I’m very happy to have regained the title and we were pretty dominant in the doubles, so it’s a great way to start to the two weeks of tournaments in the USA and I’m confident going to St. Louis,” said Shuker.

In the quad doubles Cotterill and Field won a tough semi-final against American duo Bryan Barten and Eric Daniels 6-4, 6-3 and, after winning the first set of the final, they were level at 5-5 in the second set against second seeds Greg Hasterok and David Jordan when rain caused the match to be suspended on Saturday evening. Although the Americans managed to level the final when the match resumed on Sunday, top seeds Cotterill and Field held on in the decider to prevail 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 to claim their fifth tournament of the year together and their third at ITF 2 Series level.

All four Brits will now contest the US Open USTA Wheelchair Tennis Championships in St. Louis, the sixth and last Super Series tournament of the year, which begins tomorrow.