Norfolk and Lapthorne Claim Third Super Series Doubles Title
2nd July 2012Peter Norfolk and Andy Lapthorne have won their third Super Series quad doubles title together as they claimed the trophy at the BNP Paribas French Open this weekend.
After their 2012 Florida Open title and victory in the 2011 US Open USTA Wheelchair Tennis Championships, top seeds Lapthorne and Norfolk won their first BNP Paribas French Open title after defeating Israeli duo Noam Gershony and Boaz Kramer 4-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Having finished runners-up in last year's tournament, the Brits reached the final following a straight forward semi-final win over French duo Thomas Huguenin and Sebastien Jance 6-1, 6-0.
World no.4 Lapthorne also reached the semi-finals of the singles competition but faced stiff competition from eventual winner and world No.3 Gershony losing out 6-4, 6-0.
“In such an important year it’s another first for us as a doubles pair to win in France and we’ll just continue to work hard and build on this success ahead of the London 2012 Paralympic Games in less than two months,” said 21-year-old Lapthorne.
“The next big tournament for us is the British Open Super Series in Nottingham later this month and I’ll be hoping to do well in singles and doubles there.”
Meanwhile, Jamie Burdekin also enjoyed a successful tournament, finishing as runner-up in the quad singles event after reaching his first career Super Series final.
The unseeded Briton, world ranked No. 8 at the start of the tournament, can now expect to climb the rankings despite losing out 6-2, 6-3 to second seed Gershony.
The NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour continues this week with Lucy Shuker, Jordanne Whiley, Gordon Reid and Marc McCarroll all competing at the doubles event at The Championships, Wimbledon from Friday 6th July to Sunday 8th July.