Alfie Hewett claimed his first Australian Open men’s wheelchair singles title on Saturday as he beat 16-year-old Tokita Oda 6-3, 6-1.
Hewett, 25, also won the men’s wheelchair doubles title on Friday, picking up his 16th major title with partner Gordon Reid.
The men’s singles No. 1 found himself 3-1 down to Oda after four games but he soon found his rhythm to dominate the rest of the set, winning five straight games. Hewett carried his momentum into the following set to win his seventh Grand Slam singles title.
Hewett lost the Melbourne final in 2021 and 2022 and said those defeats “haunted” him.
“It’s third time lucky,” he said. “There was a lot of history and baggage behind that emotion at the end. I want to be able to say I’ve won everything and this is obviously something that was missing.
“With that comes a lot more pressure as when you’ve not got something, you want it so badly.”
“I’d probably say it’s my biggest battle. Knowing deep down you can win it, and having to just go again every year.
“I think it was literally the worst possible start, but once I’d got the first set under my belt, everything unlocked. The second set was probably one of my best ever at a Grand Slam.”
In the women’s draw, World No. 1 Diede de Groot beat Yui Kamiji 0-6, 6-2, 6-2 to win her fifth consecutive Australian Open title.
