Former south-east England women’s champion Louise Burdette partnered Tim Beeson to glory in Chiswick Tennis Club’s annual mixed doubles tournament after a pulsating final.
The pair defeated Charlie (Tim Henman’s cousin) and Felicity Billington 7-6 in the single-set final to claim the title after a topsy-turvy clash.
Indeed, the final was an incredible single-setter, lasting 45 minutes.
At 5-4, with Charlie serving for the title, Burdette and Beeson saved four match points at 5-4, and managed a crucial break, before pulling off a thrilling win with a final score of 7-6.
Thirty players competed in the event, organised by Pete Griffiths, the newest addition to Chiswick Tennis Club’s coaching team.
Griffiths’s background includes spells in such notable venues as Esporta and the Virgin Group, and he was in the national finals in 1998, after captaining his university club for three years.
He is currently working with Annabel Croft at the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton on a the Kids After School initiative.
Fifteen pairs played in the first round, with three games of 20 minutes each, and the top two pairs went through to the quarter-finals, while even the losers were able to compete in a plate competition.
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