ALEXANDRIA-born world No 1 Gordon Reid completed a career Grand Slam of doubles titles yesterday after he triumphed in the Australian Open wheelchair event alongside Joachim Gerard of Belgium.
Reid’s defence of his singles title in Melbourne had come to a meek end at the hands of Gerard on Wednesday, but the pair united in the doubles to beat Englishman Alfie Hewett and his Argentinian partner Gus Fernandez 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (10/3).
It required a final set tie-break to seal a victory on Court Seven. The win in Melbourne means that Reid now holds all four major doubles titles.
“It was a last-minute decision to play with Jo but one that has paid off,” said Reid following the fifth Grand Slam doubles title win of his career.
“I don’t think any one of us played our best tennis in the final [yesterday] but we upped our level when it mattered in the match tie-break.
“It’s also a great feeling to complete the career doubles grand slam.”
Reid won the Wimbledon’s men’s doubles title for the first time last summer, having already triumphed at the 2015 US Open and twice at the French Open, in 2015 and 2016.
The Scot also became the wheelchair singles champion at the Australian Open and Wimbledon last year, and secured the Paralympic singles gold medal in Rio – beating Hewett in the final.
There was no wheelchair tennis competition at last summer’s US Open as a consequence of a clash of dates with the Paralympics.
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