Gordon Reid clinched his first singles title of 2017 on Saturday after securing his second successive ABN AMRO World Wheelchair Tennis Tournament crown in Rotterdam with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Nicolas Peifer of France.
World No.3 Reid secured early breaks in both sets of the ITF 1 Series final and took the last three games of the opening set, serving out the with a forehand down the line. He took a commanding 4-0 lead in the second set and a Peifer double fault set up match point, with the Frenchman knocking a forehand into the net to give 2016 ITF World Champion Reid the victory and the latest title for a Brit on the Tennis Foundation’s Wheelchair Tennis World Class Programme.
“I’m very pleased with how this week went for me in Rotterdam. Not just the results, but more importantly the performances were massively improved from how I started the year in Australia,” said Reid, who completed the Rotterdam event having beaten Australian Open champion Gustavo Fernandez of Argentina in the semi-finals and Australian Open runner-up Peifer in the final.
Paralympic gold medallist Reid began his singles title defence in Rotterdam with a 6-0, 6-4 victory over fellow Brit Alfie Hewett in another rematch of their Rio 2016 men’s singles final. Hewett was also a finalist in the men’s doubles in Rotterdam, partnering Fernandez.
“It’s always a big opportunity to play alongside and ATP event, so I’m happy to have showcased some of my best tennis on the way to defending my title here. I’m looking forward to a good lengthy training block at home now before getting back to competing in April,” added Reid.
Image courtesy of Hannie Verhoeven