‘It’s agonising to be that close’: Alfie Hewett misses out on wheelchair tennis gold by finest of margins
Hewett saw his match point drop shot bounce on the wrong side of the line and had to settle for silver as Tokito Oda won the men’s singles final 6-2 4-6 7-5
There’s no need for Alfie Hewett to take a trip to nearby Disneyland for a ride on Big Thunder Mountain. He’s already ridden a rollercoaster in Paris and he’s rightly feeling a bit sick.
Less than 24 hours after he completed a career Golden Slam in wheelchair tennis doubles with partner Gordon Reid, the world number one was back on Philippe Chatrier for a singles clash with Japan’s Tokito Oda.
After his historic win at Wimbledon just a few weeks ago, Hewett needed another gold here to complete the set.
But he spurned a match point chance in a three-set thriller and then was left in tears after Oda reeled off point after point to take the title 6-2 4-6 7-5.
Hewett though should take solace in his supporting role in the quality sporting moment of these Paralympics - a truly world-class match played in front of jumping crowd at an iconic venue.
“Deep down to be one point away from gold, that’s going to stick with me for a long time,” said Hewett, “I’ve missed gold by two or three inches there, it’s pretty agonising to be that close. I really like that I had the momentum at that point.
“I’ll admit it affected me, he saved a match point in the Paralympic final and it didn’t deflate him, he just brought out his best tennis. I just felt like I was losing grip of the match after that and that’s what I’m most disappointed about.
“But if you are going to lose then you’ve got to lose with your head held high. What we’ve both done for wheelchair tennis and for the Paralympics with that match, sometimes things are bigger than a gold medal.
“What we’ve done here will go down in the history of our sport, that’s what I told him at the end.”
Oda and Hewett are developing a fierce rivalry, this was their 16th match and the head-to-head is now deadlocked.
But the scoreline does not tell the story of a match that veered from the ridiculous to the sublime and back again.
Hewett has looked imperious on his run through the rounds here but after taking a medical time out early in the first set for a groin injury, appeared well off his game. When he came back on court he was grimacing after every shot, he won just two points on first serve and made a slew of unforced errors as the match seemed all but over.
However, a stunning second set comeback swung the momentum again, Hewett having a chance to serve for gold, a deft drop shot on match point the wrong side of the line by a fraction.
Tennis is seems can be a game of inches too and Oda took advantage as the Brit was left bereft, his second Paralympic final defeat after losing to Scotland’s Gordon Reid in Tokyo.
“I’m made of strong stuff, I wasn’t going to quit because of the injury,” he insisted. “I felt a sharp pain during the warm-up and they think it might be a tear, so we’ll see what happens.
“It caught me off card but Tokito also played brilliantly in that first set. I felt like I was just fighting too many battles but then the adrenaline kicked in. I managed to channel my thoughts a bit better and got myself back into the match.
“Right now, it feels very bittersweet but I’ve learned a lot about perspective. One day, when I retire, I think being part of that match is going to be right up there with my career highlights.”
Novak Djokovic appeared at four Olympics before he completed his Golden Slam in singles and Hewett, just 26, has plenty of mileage in the tank.
“This isn’t going to dampen my celebrations of that gold with Gordon - we worked really hard for that gold medal and we’re going to enjoy it,” he added.
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