Tennis lover David gets second chance at sport

David Sinclair made his debut in a touch tennis tournament held at Wolverhampton University's Walsall campus last weekend, competing against able-bodied players in the fast paced and accessible version of the game.

Touch tennis is played with high-density foam balls on small courts and Mr Sinclair is the first disabled athlete to take part in a touch tennis tournament anywhere in the country.

He said: “This weekend was a fantastic experience and to become the first wheelchair athlete to take part in a Touch tennis tournament was a source of great pride.

"I’ll be back next year.

"We have a small but vibrant community of wheelchair tennis players across the West Midlands.

"I have no doubt that if there were more indoor facilities that we would see many more people with disabilities taking up tennis."

Mr Sinclair was a keen tennis player before an accident in his teens left him in a wheelchair and unsure he would play again.

However, with the support of the University of Wolverhampton and Walsall-based tennis coach Clayton Edge, he has started to thrive at the new version of the sport.

He used to play at the Walsall Arboretum but it was the move indoors at the University of Wolverhampton’s Walsall campus that transformed his game.

He said: “It’s hard to move a wheelchair around on grass especially when it’s wet.

"Moving indoors meant that I could suddenly play all-year round."

The Lawn Tennis Association has recently announced a historic funding opportunity of £125m which they want to invest in creating a programme of investment in facilities to allow more people to play more often, including opportunities for touch tennis.

The association is now calling on tennis clubs, parks, local government, volunteers, coaches and businesses across the region to come together and register their interest in bidding for investment to transform their local tennis facilities at www.lta.org.uk/TBTT.