Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid clawed their way back from a set and a break down to claim the men's wheelchair doubles crown at the US Open for a sixth time, cementing their status as one of the sport's most enduring partnerships.
It had been five years since the British pair last lifted the trophy at Flushing Meadows, and for a while it looked like the wait might continue. Spain's Martín de la Puente and the Netherlands' Ruben Spaargaren raced through the first set, reeling off six straight games after Hewett and Reid had opened with an early 2-0 lead. The challengers kept the pressure on into the second set too, breaking to move 3-2 ahead.
That's when the top seeds turned things around. Four consecutive games swung the set back in their favor and forced a 10-point match tie-break, where Hewett and Reid pulled clear to lead 7-4. A double fault from Hewett at 8-6 briefly threatened to open the door again, but the pair steadied themselves to close out a 2-6, 6-3, 10-7 win.
The result marks their third Grand Slam title of 2026 and takes Reid's career doubles haul to 30 majors 26 of them alongside Hewett. Reflecting on ending the five-year drought at this event, Hewett said the title was one they'd wanted badly and hinted there was plenty more to come from the partnership.
It capped a big day for Hewett overall: earlier, he'd booked his spot in the singles final after Gustavo Fernández retired injured while trailing. He'll now face defending champion Tokito Oda, who is chasing a calendar Grand Slam.
No comments: