Alfie Hewett says winning his first Paralympic gold medal alongside Gordon Reid is “the stuff of dreams”.
The Britons defeated Japan’s Tokito Oda and Takuya Miki 6-2 6-1 in the wheelchair tennis men’s doubles decider at Roland Garros.
It completes a career ‘Golden Slam’ for Reid and Hewett in doubles, where they are the dominant force in the men’s game.
They had previously lost the Paralympic doubles finals at Rio 2016 and Tokyo in 2021.
“It’s something we have been desperate for for a long time now and we have come so close twice and felt that heartbreak, felt that pain,” said Reid.
“That’s been some of the toughest moments in my career. To sit here with the gold around our necks, it’s up there with one of the best.”
Despite the scoreline, the first set was extremely competitive, lasting an hour with both pairings having eight break-point opportunities.
However, 26-year-old Hewett and Reid, 32, raced through the second, with a brilliant Hewett cross-court drop-shot winner sealing victory.
Immediately afterwards, Hewett leaned back and threw his racquet in the air in celebration before he and Reid shared a long embrace on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Asked what they said to each other, Reid replied: “I think we said, ‘we did it, we finally did it – it’s ours’.”
It is a fifth Paralympics medal for Reid, who defeated Hewett to win singles gold at Rio 2016.
Hewett, who has four medals with a fifth guaranteed, will be across the net from Oda again on Saturday when they meet in the men’s singles final.
Source Agencies
