Alfie Hewett claimed his first men’s wheelchair singles Wimbledon title on Sunday, beating Spaniard Martin de la Puente in straight sets on No. 1 Court.
The Brit has now won a singles and doubles title at all of tennis’ majors, having lost in the final of the singles at Wimbledon in both of the last two years.
The 26-year-old, ranked No. 2 for the tournament, took the first set in convincing fashion as De La Puente struggled to hold serve.
Hewett, who has battled a shoulder issue throughout the tournament, had difficulties with his own serve in the second set as he attempted to close out the match. A stunning return on break point in the seventh game of the set saw Hewett take an advantage he refused to relinquish, eventually winning 6-2, 6-3.
“These last few years have been difficult, leaving the championship … to leave on singles final loss has been not far off heartbreaking the last couple of years,” Hewett said in his on-court interview after clinching victory. “I’ve been really trying to see the positives in my developments and my game on grass but, when you’ve been watching this ever since a young kid and it’s been a dream for so long, narrowly missing out is a real tough one.
“I’ll be honest, last night I was a ball of nerves because I didn’t want to walk away with another loss today. So I’m just really really proud of my performance out there and so grateful for all of you.”
Hewett now has 29 Grand Slam titles between singles and doubles, and has a chance to reach 30 major wins later on Sunday as he and fellow Brit Gordon Reid take on Japan’s Takuya Miki and Tokito Oda for the men’s doubles title. Oda, 18, is the current No. 1 singles player in the world and beat Hewett in the final in west London 2023.
Hewett will reclaim top spot in the men’s wheelchair singles rankings after the victory over De La Puente..
