Southland’s David Wagner picks up Victory No. 2 in convincing fashion on second day of ITF Wheelchair Tennis Masters

Written by: Staff on 6th November 2013

Southland’s David Wagner picks up Victory No. 2 in convincing fashion on second day of ITF Wheelchair Tennis Masters |

Just like the world’s top men’s ATP pro players battling for the year-end title currently from the O2 Arena in London, England, the world’s best men’s and women’s open and quad wheelchair tennis players battled it out in round-robin play on Day 2 of the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters at Mission Viejo’s Marguerite Tennis Pavilion.

The Roger Federer of the open division is top-seeded, defending champion and 2013 Australian Open champion Shingo Kunieda of Japan, who posted another solid day after a convincing win on opening day on Tuesday. For the second straight day, Kunieda dropped just one game as he defeated Gordon Reid of Great Britain, 6-1, 6-0.

“I had a great match today,” Kunieda said. “These are the best players in the world and everyone is tough, but I’m fit and ready to move on and play again tomorrow.”

Men’s quad division player David Wagner of Chula Vista, Calif. also won for the second straight day. In both matches, he won a close first set, before winning the second set 6-0. On Wednesday, he got past rival Lucas Sithole of South Africa, a player who has handed Wagner his only four losses the entire year.

“You never know what you’re going to get in tennis, that’s the beauty of it,” Wagner said. “Today Lucas was strong in the first set and I just happened to get some points to go my way in the second set.

“Lucas is extremely strong and fast and makes you run down everything. You almost have to play high-risk against him. We may face each other again. In New York at the US Open we both ended up in the same round-robin and ended up meeting later in the tournament.”

This is the first time that either of the year-end singles and doubles events has been hosted in the United States, and the first time since 2002 that the two events have been held at the same venue. Wheelchair tennis follows the same rules as able-bodied tennis, except that the ball can bounce twice.

The 2013 Wheelchair Tennis Masters in Mission Viejo continues with day sessions from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and night following from 6 to 10 p.m. through Monday, Nov. 11. Tickets are still available at www.itfwheelchairmasters.

Along with incredible competition this week, fans will be entertained by a number of activities including a Tennis Greats Night on Saturday, Nov. 9. The 6 p.m. event includes Bob Lutz, Michael Chang, Roy Emerson and Dennis Ralston. Also, on Thursday, Nov. 7 following the night session’s first match, an “Up/Down Exhibition” will be held to show the integrative qualities of wheelchair tennis versus other sports. On Friday, Nov. 8, the Nadadores Dive Team will host an exhibition diving event at 6 p.m. On Saturday, Nov. 9 current and former military personnel will be honored through Military Appreciation Day. Complimentary tickets will be available for all past and present military personnel. A free Wounded Warrior Clinic will be held that day from 3:30 to 5 p.m. for any wounded veterans interested in trying wheelchair tennis. A “SoCal Locals” free Wheelchair Tennis Clinic rounds out the activities on Sunday.

Folks unable to attend the matches can catch all of the action streamed live online on the city’s YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/missionviejoca. Tennis results will also be updated each night at http://itfwheelchairtennismasters.com.

Topics: 10sballs.com, Atp, Bob Lutz, David Wagner, Dennis Ralston, Gordon Reid, Michael Chang, NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters, Shingo Kunieda, Tennis, Tennis News