 Photographer: Chen Gong
Date: 14 Sep 2008 |  Photographer: Chen Gong
Date: 15 Sep 2008 |  Photographer: Chen Gong
Date: 14 Sep 2008 |  Photographer: Chen Gong
Date: 14 Sep 2008 |  Photographer: Chen Gong
Date: 14 Sep 2008 |  Photographer: Chen Gong
Date: 14 Sep 2008 |
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| 14 Sep 2008 - Olympic Green Tennis Centre, Beijing | |
| Women's Round Up Day 7: Vergeer wins third gold |
Quite possibly the most remarkable tennis match in Paralympic Games history ended on Sunday with Esther Vergeer (NED) clinching a third straight women's singles Paralympic gold medal at Olympic Green Tennis Centre after a 62 46 76(5) victory over second seed Korie Homan (NED).
After winning gold in Sydney and Athens, Vergeer came in to Sunday's final having not lost a set of tennis in Paralympic singles competition for 13 matches. She extended that record to 27 sets won in successsion since making her Paralympic debut in 2000, as she built up a 3-1 lead to take the first set 62.
At 4-2 up in the second set, Vergeer appeared to be in control of the match, but Homan, who had taken Vergeer to three sets on four previous occasions before Beijing, would not give in. In just her first Paralympics the world No 2 chipped away at Vergeer's lead and after taking three games in succession Homan delivered a powerful backhand to bring up two set points. Homan hit the first set point long over Vergeer's baseline, but made the most of a Vergeer second serve on the next point to clinch the set 64 and force the decider.
In their previous four three-set encounters Homan has taken the first set, only to see Vergeer comfortably take the third. However, in front of 9,000 spectators on Centre Court Vergeer was always chasing the match throughout the final set and Homan twice came within two points of moving a break up in the first six games.
She finally got her chance to break when Vergeer double faulted in the eighth game of the decider and Homan confidently put away a forehand winner to secure the break and move to within a game of making Paralympic history.
A tight ninth game went to deuce, with Homan visibly nervous and serving three faults in succession before a Vergeer volley crept inside the baseline to bring the reigning champion back to within a game of her opponent.
But with Vergeer serving to stay in the match it was she that now looked the more nervous of the two as she first saw a forehand winner sail past her and then doubled faulted. However, the game went to deuce, and with the tension continually rising Homan managed to secure a match point - the first match point Vergeer has had to face in over five years, since her last loss against Daniela do Toro (AUS) in Jauary 2003.
With victory within touching distance and Vergeer's unbeaten record of 348 matches under grave threat, Homan hit a backhand in the net to see her one and only match point disappear and two points later Vergeer executed a winning dropshot to bring the scores back level.
Homan composed herself and earned three more game points on her subsequent service game, Vergeer just missing the baseline with a forehand on Homan's second game point to give the second seed the lead once again.
Two Vergeer double-faults and two Homan backhands that ended up in the net left the next game finely poised until Vergeer hit a volley that again crept inside the baseline to take the gold medal match in to a deciding tiebreak.
Vergeer inched ahead in the tie-break, but a wide forehand gave Homam the lead for the first time at 3-3. However, a wild Homan backhand gave Vergeer the mini-break and Homan then double-faulted to present Vergeer with three gold medal points.
Vergeer missed her opponent's baseline on her first match point and Homan produced a forehand winner to leave Vergeer with just one match point remaining, but that was all she needed and after two hours and one minute the two-time champion became a three-time Paralympic champion, hailing her victory with great screams of delight.
After a thrilling contest that kept the 9,000 spectators on the edge of their seats until the very last point, a torrent of conflicting emotions stayed with both players way beyond the medal ceremony.
But while Vergeer once again occupied the top spot on the medal podium, few can argue that it was the sport of wheelchair tennis itself that was the winner on the penultimate day of the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Tennis Event and there it was perhaps appropriate that Sir Phillip Craven (GBR), President of the International Paralympic Committee, presented the medals to Vergeer, Homan and bronze medallist Florence Gravellier (FRA).
"It was a very, very hard game," said Vergeer. "Korie is a very good player and she kept the pressure on me the whole time. She played really well. Sometimes I was a bit too scared and sometimes I was not. From the second set on I felt nervous and scared almost. Fear is probably one of your biggest opponents.
"Especially today I was not thinking about the three hundred plus games I have won. I mean, I am going to lose matches one day, but I was just really, really hoping it was not going to be today. I was just this close losing this match today, the most important match of my year, the whole four years I've been working for it. I'm just the happiest person in the world right now," added the triple Paralympic champion.
Homan, who was incosolable after the match, said: I am very happy to win the silver medal. At the same time I am a little sad because I was one point away from the gold. It was an amazing match, an amazing final. Unfortunately there is only one gold, and I am the loser today."
"It is my first Paralympics and so therefore also my first time in the Paralympic final. Everything is new, the whole atmosphere, so many crowds. It was a big difference to what I have experienced before. Esther is much more experienced than I am and she has some advantages in this."
If Monday's men's singles final has half as much drama attached to it, the spectators are in for quite a treat.
Gravellier and Racineux clinch women's doubles bronze
Having come in to probably her final Paralympics without a medal, Florence Gravellier (FRA) will leave Beijing with two bronze medals after she pairred up with Arlette Racineux (FRA), a veteran of four Paralympics, to come from set down to win the women's doubles bronze medal match. It was Racineux's second women's doubles bronze medal after also winning the bronze in Atlanta in 1996.
Fourth seeds Beth Arnoult and Kaitlyn Verfuerth (USA) threatened to cause an upset as they secured the decisive break late in to the first set, but the French third seeds evenutally went on to seal a 57 63 62 victory in two hours and six minutes.
"It's just amazing the work she (Racinuex) has done to come back to be the French No 2 qualified player and then helped me out there to get good for the bronze," said Gravellier. "It was just the team work and I think we created a good feeling together and that's why we are here today."
"We wanted to win this medal," said Racineux. "Florence said to me before the match 'I need this medal' and I said 'okay, no problem.'"
The women's singles and women's doubles drawsheets are available to view or download below in PDF format.
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