Photo : Martin Sidorjak
One month after being denied his first major title, Rob Shaw will have another shot at the All-England Club.
The Canadian wheelchair tennis player is into the final of the quad doubles competition at the second Grand Slam event in a row after he and partner Heath Davidson defeated Gregory Slade and David Wagner, a former partner of Shaw’s, in straight sets on Thursday at Wimbledon.
Shaw has now reached the final at three of the last four majors but is still seeking his first Grand Slam title. He is the last Canadian standing at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.
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Efficiency on break point was key for the Canadian and his Australian partner, as they converted four of six opportunities while saving six of eight on their own serve. They also won 55 per cent of their second serve return points in the 7-6(4), 6-2 win.
Both teams had their chances in the opening set, with Shaw and Davidson scoring an early break for a 3-1 lead, only to find themselves down a break at 4-5. The pair managed to break to love as Slade and Wagner served for the opening set, going on to win it in a tiebreak.
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Shaw and Davidson carried that momentum into the second set, winning the first eight points as they took a 2-0 lead. Slade and Wagner never came particularly close to getting back into the match, failing to convert their lone break point in the sixth game at which point they already trailed by a double break.
Standing between Shaw and a maiden Grand Slam title is a familiar pair. Top seeds Sam Schroder and Niels Vink will take on the Canadian and his Australian partner in the final. Schroder and Vink defeated Shaw in last year’s US Open final, the Canadian’s first major final, in straight sets.
Should he be victorious, Shaw would be the first Canadian to win a wheelchair Grand Slam title.
