Alfie Hewett swept past France's Guilhem Laget with a commanding 6-3 6-0 victory on Court Suzanne Lenglen, advancing to the quarter-finals of the French Open wheelchair singles despite rain that forced organisers to move the match across Paris. The 28-year-old British champion has made the Grand Slam stage his second home, having claimed 10 major titles and lifted the Roland Garros clay crown three times—most recently in 2021. Now he sets his sights on a semi-final berth against China's Ji Zhenxu, keeping his momentum alive in a tournament where he has consistently proven himself among the sport's elite.
The victory comes at a moment when wheelchair tennis is reaching new heights of visibility and competition. Hewett's dominance in Paris reflects the growing depth of talent at the elite level, even as fellow British star Gordon Reid's unexpected first-round exit underscores just how fiercely contested these matches have become. Reid, the 34-year-old Scot who has competed at Roland Garros every year since his 2013 debut, fell to Japan's Tokito Oda in a rain-interrupted match with a score of 6-2 6-4. It marks a significant moment for Reid—the first time in over a decade that he has failed to reach at least the quarter-finals at this tournament, a testament both to Oda's rising dominance and the shifting landscape of the sport.
The source of Oda's strength is undeniable. The Japanese player has been the dominant force in men's wheelchair singles for the past 12 months, capturing four consecutive Grand Slam titles and claiming Paralympic gold in Paris just last year. Now, the 29-year-old is pursuing a fourth successive French Open crown, adding another layer of intrigue to the tournament's unfolding drama. His performance speaks to how quickly the sport is evolving, with multiple players now capable of challenging for the game's biggest prizes.
For Britain's wheelchair doubles contingent, however, momentum is unmistakable. Hewett and Reid are seeded first in the men's wheelchair doubles and will return to action on Wednesday as they face French-Brazilian partners Frederic Cattaneo and Daniel Rodrigues. The British pair's track record here is extraordinary—they have won the men's wheelchair doubles championship at the French Open for six consecutive years, a streak that underscores their consistency and partnership. That dominance in doubles, even as they navigate the unpredictability of singles competition, shows the depth of British talent in the wheelchair circuit.
Elsewhere on the mixed doubles stage, British player Neal Skupski and his American partner Desirae Krawczyk saw their tournament come to an end in a quarter-final heartbreaker, losing 7-6 (7-5) 7-5 to Laura Siegemund and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in a closely contested pairing between German and French opponents. The loss stings given the tightness of the first set, yet it illustrates the calibre of competition now on display at Roland Garros across all formats.
As the tournament progresses through Paris, Hewett's run toward the semi-finals will be watched closely, while the British doubles partnership prepares to defend their extraordinary legacy on the clay courts where they have reigned supreme for more than half a decade.