Hewett and Reid claim sixth-straight French Open title
French Open 2025Dates: 25 May-8 June Venue: Roland GarrosCoverage: Live radio commentaries across 5 Live Sport and BBC Sounds, plus live text commentaries on the BBC Sport website and app
Alfie Hewett fought back from heartbreak in the men's wheelchair singles final to clinch a sixth successive French Open doubles title with partner Gordon Reid.The British top seeds claimed a 6-4 1-6 10-7 victory over Japan's Tokito Oda and France's Stephane Houdet.That came after Hewett lost 6-4 7-6 (8-6) to world number one Oda in the singles showpiece."It never gets dull winning these trophies," said 27-year-old Hewett.The five-time defending champions came out of the blocks strong to take a commanding opening set.However Oda and Houdet, playing their first doubles tournament together, found three breaks to force a deciding match tie-break.There was concern as Scotland's Reid needed a three-minute medical timeout at 3-1 down in the second to address a cut on the side of his right thumb.But an inspired performance followed from the Britons, who won six points on the bounce to fight back from 4-7 down in the 10-point match tie-break.It was Hewett who completely overpowered Oda in a cross-court forehand rally to seal victory at 10-7 and protect the pair's record in Paris."Alfie did an amazing job to come back from his match earlier and produce a performance like that," Reid said."It's always a pleasure to have him on my side of the net."
Englishman Hewett had earlier lost a fourth major singles final against the talented Japanese teenager Oda. Hewett, who last won the French Open in 2021, was broken twice in the opening set to trail 4-1 but battled back to level at 4-4 before eventually succumbing to Oda.Oda also took control early in the second, breaking in the third game to lead 3-1 and he had the chance to serve-out the match at 5-4.However, Hewett - looking to add an 11th Grand Slam title to his CV after winning the Australian Open in January - refused to accept defeat and a break back led to a chaotic conclusion on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.The pair exchanged breaks to ensure a tie-break, which was subsequently won by Oda.Oda is the third player to win the men's wheelchair singles title on three or more occasions at the French Open after compatriot Shingo Kunieda (8) and Hewett (3).
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