Shropshire Star

Tarver proves a smash hit in Shrewsbury at Wheelchair Tennis National Finals

The Lexus Wheelchair Tennis National Finals returned to Shropshire – with Naomie Tarver impressively claiming a hat-trick of titles.

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Players from across the country competed at The Shrewsbury Club, with last weekend’s tournament the culmination of the LTA’s domestic calendar of National Wheelchair Tennis Series events.

A number of Shropshire-based players took part, with Fiona Jones, the chair of Tennis Shropshire, presenting the winners with their trophies.

The Shrewsbury Club’s indoor courts first hosted the prestigious event in 2017.

“It was a privilege to be invited to present the prizes,” said Jones. “It was really enjoyable watching the tennis and the standard was terrific.

“There was some very exciting matches, with many of them going to a nail-biting third set.

“It was good to see a number of Shropshire players playing, and it’s always fantastic to see a national tournament staged here in Shropshire.

“It’s testament to the quality of The Shrewsbury Club as a venue and the work which everyone does there to make the players feel so welcome.”

Tarver was the weekend’s big winner as she left with four trophies, including the women’s singles trophy for most points accumulated across the LTA’s domestic wheelchair tennis season.

Tarver claimed the National Finals singles title for the first time, overcoming Tracy Vallance in a tie-break.

She teamed up with Helen Bond to win the doubles title and also partnered Will Barton to victory in the mixed doubles final.

There was also a first-time winner in the men’s singles with Phil Fielding crowned champion, while Gary Cox secured the quad singles title.

Ten-year-old Matthew Knoesen became one of the youngest winners of a senior title in the novice singles, while Lucas de Gouveia and Ellen Tribley won the junior singles titles.

Go to the following link for a list of winners https://competitions.lta.org.uk/sport/winners.aspx?id=DBEDEF65-E680-4BFF-917D-6A2AEE9108AC