Grand Slam-chasing Joachim Gerard gave his hopes of winning the first major of his career a timely boost at the Melbourne Open – the first ITF 1 Series event on the 2020 UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour.

Elsewhere, in the Women's singles, Japan’s Yui Kamiji maintained her unbeaten record for the year – a campaign which she hopes will guide her to Paralympic glory – while Sam Schroder emerged victorious from an all-Dutch quad singles final.

The traditional precursor to the Australian Open wheelchair tennis event saw neither of the world’s top-two ranked players progress to the men’s singles final. Alfie Hewett improved significantly on two three-set efforts against Japan’s Kouhei Suzuki and fellow Brit Gordon Reid to eliminate top seed and World No. 2 Gustavo Fernandez 6-4 6-3 in the semifinals, where reigning NEC Masters champion Gerard also beat World No. 1 Shingo Kunieda 7-5 6-1.

In beating Hewett 4-6 7-5 6-3 in the final, Gerard made it two wins over the Briton from their last three matches since December, ensuring that he goes into the Australian Open on a high after returning to the world’s top four in this week’s new men’s singles rankings.

Lucy Shuker, meanwhile, impressed in the early rounds of the women’s singles, earning three-set wins over world No. 7 Kgothatso Montjane and world No. 4 Marjolein Buis.
But with Shuker bowing out in straight sets to Kamiji in one of the British-Japanese semifinals, it was her fellow Brit Jordanne Whiley who once again provided the biggest threat to the Japanese top seed’s challenge.
Kamiji showed few signs of the vulnerabilities that saw her drop her first ever set of tennis to Momoko Ohtani days earlier at the Tweed Heads International and, instead, it was Whiley that ended Ohtani’s challenge 6-2 6-4 in the last four.

Thereafter, Kamiji appeared to be cruising to her second title of the season as she led the final by a set and 4-0, only for Whiley to string together four games of her own. But Kamiji soon re-established herself, wrapping up a 6-2, 6-4 victory to make it eight wins from eight matches in 2020.

After both winning their first career Super Series titles in 2019, Schroder and Niels Vink continue to go from strength to strength, but neither possess quad singles rankings that would earn them a place at the Australian Open, despite Schroder breaking into the world’s top four a week ago, following the Tweed Heads International.

However, that didn’t stop either player from beating opponents who will be in action at Melbourne Park this week, Schroder sweeping past top seed Andy Lapthorne 6-1 6-2 and Vink proving equally proficient in ending the challenge of second seed David Wagner 6-1 6-4, thereby making it three wins in four matches against the American.

With the title assured of going back to the Netherlands, Schroder proceeded to edge ahead 4-3 in the career head-to-head between himself and Vink, courtesy of a convincing 6-3 6-2 victory in the final.
Hewett and Reid go into the Australian Open boasting an unbeaten men’s doubles record so far this season after overcoming French top seeds Stephane Houdet and Nicolas Peifer 6-4 0-6 (10-7). The same two partnerships had been due to meet in the final of the Tweed Heads International just over a week ago before Houdet and Peifer awarded the Brits a walkover.

There was a familiar partnership in the top half of the women’s doubles draw as multiple Grand Slam champions Jiske Griffioen and Diede de Groot renewed their celebrated partnership and beat top seeds Marjolein Buis and Dana Mathewsoin in a deciding match tiebreak in the quarterfinals.

However, ultimately the ITF 1 title went to the Chinese partnership of Hui Min Huang and Zhenzhen Zhu, who claimed straight sets wins over both Griffioen and Van Koot and then second-seeds Lucy Shuker and Kgothatso Montjane. Huang and Zhu beat the British-South African partnership of Shuker and Zhu 6-3 6-2.

In quad doubles, Heath Davidson and Wagner will be on opposite sides of the net at the Australian Open. But at Hume Tennis and Community Centre, a little over 30 minutes away from Melbourne Park, it was the partnership of Davidson and Wagner that lifted the Melbourne Open title, denying Schroder and Vink of back-to-back titles after a 7-6(4) 3-6 (12-10) victory.

Wagner now starts the Australian Open back at No. 1 in the quad double rankings, pushing Davidson back down to No. 2, after points won at the 2019 Australian Open also came off players’ 52-week rollover rankings.