Alfie Hewett beat compatriot Gordon Reid in straight sets to become the first British singles player to win the Wheelchair Tennis Masters.
Hewett, beaten by Reid in last year’s Paralympic final, won 6-3 6-2 in one hour and 18 minutes in Loughborough.
The 19-year-old trailed 3-0 in the first set, but won eight straight games to take the opener and establish a lead he would hold on to in the second.
“It was probably one of the best matches I have played,” said Hewett.
“Gordon is a great competitor. I am really proud of this win.”
Hewett, who won the French Open in June, moves to second in the world rankings.
As a doubles pairing, Reid and Hewett have won two Wimbledon titles, the US Open and a Paralympic silver medal.
Reid, 26, added: “Alfie has had a brilliant week and played some class tennis.
“I have been part of the journey and watched him from 12 years old to here now, I am proud of what he has done in the sport.”
Fellow Briton Andy Lapthorne plays American David Wagner later on Sunday in the quad final, knowing a win will see him become world number one.
| Wheelchair Tennis Masters | |
|---|---|
| Venue: Loughborough University Tennis Centre Dates: 29 Nov-3 Dec | |
| Coverage: Watch live across Connected TV, the BBC Sport website and mobile app. | |
Alfie Hewett will play Gordon Reid in an all-British final at the Wheelchair Tennis Masters in Loughborough.
Reid, 26, beat Japan’s Shingo Kunieda 7-5 6-4 in his semi-final, while Hewett triumphed 6-0 6-2 against Belgium’s defending champion Joachim Gerard.
As a doubles pairing, Reid and Hewett, 19, have won two Wimbledon titles, the US Open and a Paralympic silver medal.
The final is live on the BBC Sport website and Connected TV from 11:00 GMT on Sunday.
Fellow Briton Andy Lapthorne beat South Africa’s Lucas Sithole 7-5 7-5 to reach the quad final.
If Lapthorne, 27, wins Sunday’s final against American David Wagner he will become world number one.
| Wheelchair Tennis Masters | |
|---|---|
| Venue: Loughborough University Tennis Centre Dates: 29 Nov-3 Dec | |
| Coverage: Watch live across Connected TV, the BBC Sport website and mobile app. | |
Britain’s Gordon Reid came from 5-1 down in a deciding set to beat top seed Gustavo Fernandez and earn a semi-final place at the Wheelchair Tennis Masters.
The 26-year-old Paralympic men’s singles champion defeated his Argentine opponent 6-3 1-6 7-5 and will play Japan’s Shingo Kunieda next.
Reid’s compatriot Alfie Hewett beat Stephane Houdet of France 2-6 7-5 6-4 and also made the semi-finals.
He will face Belgium’s defending champion Joachim Gerard.
In the women’s singles, Lucy Shuker forced Dutchwoman Marjolein Buis into a deciding third set but was defeated 6-2 6-7 (4-6) 6-2 and was knocked out.
Anthony Cotterill lost his quad singles match with Australia’s Heath Davidson 4-6 6-4 0-6, meaning he too has been eliminated.
Stan Wawrinka is looking forward to returning to the ATP World Tour in 2018, but admitted to media at the Geneva Country Club that he is still working hard to overcome his knee cartilage injury, which required two surgeries.
“The last five months were the most difficult ones of my career,” Wawrinka said. “Even today I’m not 100 per cent yet physically and with my tennis. I’m working hard each day to improve. But at least it’s going in the right direction and I’m very satisfied with that.”
The 32-year-old advanced to the final at Roland Garros and the BNP Paribas Open, the semi-finals at the Australian Open and also won the title in Geneva, but did not play the rest of the season after losing his opener at Wimbledon due to his knee injury.
“The first surgery was arthroscopy to have a look at the problem and the second one was to reconstruct the cartilage,” Wawrinka said. “It was very difficult and tough, a big surgery. I needed crutches for eight weeks and lost a lot of muscles because of that.”
Nevertheless, Wawrinka still aims to play in the 2018 Australian Open, and has been working with longtime fitness trainer Pierre Paganini, who also trains Roger Federer, to prepare for the Australian summer. He is also seeking a new coach to work alongside Yannick Fattebert after Magnus Norman’s departure in October.
“I still have many weeks to work on what is still missing. Everything went well during the last few weeks, there were no delays,” Wawrinka said. “I was very lucky to have Pierre Paganini in my entourage. Without him I would have stopped. I really needed someone who knows me inside out and who knows what I need to be fit again.”