BRITAIN’S No 1 women’s wheelchair tennis player Lucy Shuker comfortably reached the women’s singles final at the North East Wheelchair Tennis Tournament in Sunderland.
After a first round bye, World No 11 Shuker opened her bid regain the ITF 3 Series title she last won in 2008 with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over fellow Briton Anna Tarkowski, ending Tarkowski’s hopes of following up her maiden international singles title at last month’s North West Challenge in Preston.
Somerset-based Shuker will play French second seed Arlette Racineux in the final after Racineux held off a fine effort from South Wales’s Debbie Brazier to come from behind and win their semi-final 7-6(2), 6-1.
Shuker and Tarkowski are also on course to win the women’s doubles title in a three-way round robin event
Three Britons will contest today’s men’s main draw single semi-finals after all four seeded players progressed with few problems during Friday’s second day of play at Sunderland’s Puma Tennis Centre.
British men’s No 1 and top seed David Phillipson, the runner-up in the North East tournament for the past two years, began his challenge this year with a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Devon 17-year-old Josh Steels.
Nottinghamshire’s Phillipson plays Scot Kevin Simpson in the last four after Denmark’s Kenneth Kammersgaard was forced to withdraw from his scheduled quarter-final against fourth seed Simpson.
British No 3 Marc McCarroll will bid to set up an all-British final as he takes on Swedish third seed Dan Wallin in the bottom half of the draw.
The Middlesex player beat Norfolk teenager Alfie Hewett 6-1, 6-1 in the quarter-finals, while Wallin also dropped just two games in beating Denmark’s Christopher Holmer.
