At the men’s tennis tour held in Tokyo, the singles final of the wheelchair division was held, and Shingo Kunieda won the tournament for the second time in a row.
On the 8th, the 6th day of the men’s tour tournament “Japan Open” held in Koto-ku, Tokyo, the singles final of the wheelchair division was held.
In the final, 38-year-old Kunieda, who has won all four Grand Slam tournaments and the Paralympic Games in the “Lifetime Golden Slam,” played once morest 16-year-old Kaito Oda, who ranked fifth in the world.
In the first set, Kunieda displayed a variety of slow and slow shots to win four games in a row from the sixth game, winning 6-3.
In the second set, Oda made powerful shots one following another to draw momentum, while Kunieda won six games in a row and lost 2-6.
In the final 3rd set, both sides broke the service game, and the game was tangled up in a tie-break, but Kunieda showed a sharp shot that hit the course and took it 7-6, and the set count was 2 to 1. won the 2 hour 27 minute hot battle and won the tournament in a row.
Kunieda “I still show my uncle’s power”
Also, since last year’s Tokyo Paralympic Games, where he won the gold medal, were without spectators, he said, “This time, I was able to play in front of a full house, and it was a moment when another dream came true.” .
Oda “He was my dream partner”
On top of that, “I felt like I was in the ‘zone’ following Kunieda grabbed the match point. I was able to focus on just hitting the ball, and I think I found a new me. If I had done that from the beginning, I would have won. I feel it,” he said.
Regarding the tears she shed immediately following the match, she said, “They were not tears of frustration, but tears of joy. I was able to play passionately in front of a large audience, and I’m glad that we were able to play such a match in Japan.” did.
