Wimbledon: Wheelchair final beckons for British pairing
The duo are through after winning yesterday’s semi-final clash against the No.2 seeds, Annick Sevenans of Belgium and Sharon Walraven from the Netherlands.
After being 5-2 down in the first, they fought back to take it to a tie-break which they won and were too strong for their opponents in the second, winning the contest 7-6(5), 6-3.
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Hide Ad“It’s a pretty incredible feeling right now, I cannot wait for the final on Sunday,” said Whiley, 20. “We had a frustrating loss last week at the French Open and to put that out of our systems and reach the final at Wimbledon shows how far we’ve come as a partnership.”
Whiley, from Halesowen, West Midlands, who laughingly admits that on the tennis tour the other players call her “Princess Smurf”, revealed recently: “Apparently, I act a bit like a princess, and the smurf part is due to my lack of height.”
Shuker, who reached the final in 2009 and 2010 while playing with Australian Daniela di Toro, added: “It’s my third final at Wimbledon but to reach it with a fellow Brit in Paralympic year is extra-special.
Shuker, from Somerset, is currently one of the highest ranking woman in the sport in Britain following a motorbike accident in 2001 that left her paralysed from the chest down.
“We were a bit tense to begin with but both started hitting well and we’re here to win our first Grand Slam title in front of a home crowd.”
Shuker and Whiley will face Jiske Griffioen and Aniek Van Koot in tomorrow’s final.
The Dutch pair caused an upset by claiming a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win against top seeds and compatriots Esther Vergeer and Marjolein Buis.