Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid ensured a British sweep of the titles at the ABN AMRO World Wheelchair Tennis Tournament on Sunday, an event that heralded the start of the 2021 UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour for six of the event’s 12-strong field. 

Hewett, who put his rollercoaster Australian Open singles final against Joachim Gerard behind him with victory in the semi-finals, topped compatriot Reid for the singles title as he had in 2020 – though the final was a closer affair than it had been 12 months ago. 

The world No. 3 had beaten his countryman and doubles partner 6-0 6-3 in last year’s final, but it was Reid who forced the early pace this time, requiring Hewett to come from 5-2 down in the opening set and 2-0 in the second before completing a 7-5 6-4 victory. 

“I think it was a really good level from both of us today and it was just a few points at crucial moments that decided it in the end,” said Hewett after claiming his first singles title of the year.

“I had to move on pretty swiftly from 5-2 down and just tried to make balls and go for it a little bit more. I just wanted to focus on my game and try and get my face back up on that winners wall.” 

 
The road to the finals 

The Rotterdam ‘winners wall’ is an iconic part of a standout event on the roster of wheelchair tennis tournaments. The ABN AMRO World Wheelchair Tennis Tournament, held in conjunction with an ATP World Tour event, has the feel of an unofficial ‘fifth slam’ for those players who have played there over the last 13 years. 

With the world’s top eight men contesting last month’s three wheelchair tournaments in Australia, culminating in the Australian Open, it was one of the players ranked beyond the world’s Top 10 that produced the first significant result in Rotterdam. 

Spain’s Martin de la Puente marked his fourth appearance at the event by reaching his third quarter-final courtesy of a 6-4 6-0 victory and a first career win over world No.10 Takashi Sanada, before pushing two-time former champion Gustavo Fernandez, the world No. 2, over two tightly contested sets. 

“I think I played a great match, even though there are a lot of things to correct and work on,” said Fernandez, praising the young Spaniard after prevailing 6-3 7-6(10). “I think he played a great match; he’s improved a lot and he’s working really hard for it.” 

Gerard repelled another not-insignificant challenge from 19-year-old compatriot Jef Vandorpe, after which the world No.4’s hopes of winning his maiden Rotterdam title – and a third successive singles title of 2021 – hinged on beating Hewett for a third tournament in a row. 

This time, however, it was Hewett who sealed a 6-3 6-7(2) 6-3 victory on his sixth match point, having had two at 5-3 in the second set during another memorable encounter. 

“There were quite a few momentum shifts but in the end, when it really mattered, I got the job done,” said Hewett. “My serve was one of the main things I was focusing on today. That was a massive part of how I won. I learnt a lot from playing him in Australia. When a player beats me twice in a row, I don’t take that too kindly.” 

For Reid’s part, having lost eight successive times to Fernandez by the end of 2019, back-to-back three-set wins at the last two Australian Opens were a source of encouragement ahead of their semi-final, which the world No. 5 went on to win 6-3 6-2.  

“The key against Gustavo is to start the points well, to serve a high percentage first serve and to return deep, especially off his first serve,” Reid said. “I thought I returned pretty well the whole match, which set me up for the rest of the points. 

“You always look back at previous matches and if you’ve had two wins then it’s better than two losses, but at the same time they were really close matches. Today probably gives me more confidence as it highlights a few things that I probably need to use a bit more when I play him.” 

Egberink and Scheffers upset the odds before Hewett and Reid retain doubles crown 

While Hewett, Reid, Fernandez and Gerard have played in three Grand Slams over the last 12 months, for Dutch duo Tom Egberink and Maikel Scheffers the Covid-19 pandemic has meant plenty of training.  

This year’s ABN AMRO World Wheelchair Tennis Tournament was their first opportunity to play competitively since pairing up in Rotterdam in February 2020 – and they made the most of their chance, avenging their heartbreaking loss to France’s three-time tournament champions Stephane Houdet and Nicolas Peifer in last year’s semi-finals, where they had led 8-3 in the match tiebreak, with a 6-2 6-1 victory over the Australian Open finalists.  

The final proved a different story, however, as Egberink and Scheffers struggled to keep pace with Hewett and Reid, the top seeds easing to a 6-1 6-1 victory and a ninth doubles title in their 10 tournaments together since the start of 2020.