Superb Reid and Hewett storm to third men's wheelchair doubles Wimbledon crown

It’s an elite club of players indeed who can boast of three successive Wimbledon titles, but Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid are now rubbing shoulders with that esteemed company.

The British duo displayed power, tactical nous, grit and guile en route to a straight sets triumph over Jerome Gerard and Stefan Olsson in the final of the wheelchair men’s doubles at SW19.

Reid and Hewett flew out of the blocks and dominated the opening set against their counterparts, surging to a 6-1 victory.

The second set was a feast of quality, with Swede Olsson in particular hitting big forehands and deft drop shots as he and Belgium’s Gerard moved a break up at 4-3.

The Brits broke back immediately as they turned the tide of momentum back in their favour, before surging to success with a second break to take the match 6-1 6-4.

And despite the slight wobble in their push for victory, Hewett insisted he and Reid, who have never lost a Wimbledon men’s doubles clash as a duo, never wavered in their conviction they would rack up yet another trophy in their burgeoning cabinet of silverware.

“We stayed in the present moment quite well – even the games we were losing, we were in,” said the 20-year-old. “We felt quite confident out there we could keep it close and hold out the set.

“We backed ourselves in our shots and the first set showed that when we hit our shots well and were flowing around the court, there wasn’t much they could do.

“We expected them to come out in the second set and do things differently, and that’s what they did, we dropped a bit but at that crucial time in the second set, we stepped it back up.

“All our wins are special – it gets tougher every year, people expect you to win it and we know it’s not that easy.

“There are a lot of strong guys out there and the semi-final and the final proves how strong the field is.”

It is Hewett’s fourth Grand Slam doubles title overall – all with Reid – while the 26-year-old Scot has eight Slam triumphs, as well as winning the Wimbledon and Australian Open singles in 2016.

Cheered on by a lively and partisan Court 3 crowd, Reid and Hewett’s victory in the baking July sunshine delighted the hoards that turned out on the penultimate day at the All England Club.

And Reid believes the growing support for wheelchair tennis means it is a truly exciting time to play in the sport.

“The Grand Slams are the best opportunity for us to showcase the sport and get more fans interested in what we’re doing,” he said.

“And the fact we get to play in big courts – you saw how many people were out there during the match – it means a lot to us and when we get those opportunities to have that coverage, it’s the chance to inspire other people with disabilities to play tennis or other sports to get healthy.

“I think it’s a really exciting time for the sport at the moment, especially at the top of the game – the slams have done a lot for wheelchair tennis as a whole and it’s getting better and improving every year, especially at Wimbledon.”