GRAND Slam champion Gordon Reid says he's delighted at the decision to backtrack on a plan to drop wheelchair tennis championships from the forthcoming US Open tournament.
The Helensburgh hero was among many who slammed the US Tennis Association for its initial decision to cut the wheelchair competitions from the schedule for this year's championships – due to run behind closed doors at Flushing Meadows in New York from August 31.
But after a furious reaction from wheelchair and able-bodied players – the latter including Sir Andy Murray and Roger Federer – the USTA announced a U-turn, and said the wheelchair events at the tournament would take place after all from September 10.
Reid will now have the chance to win the tournament's men's doubles prize for the fourth year in a row alongside fellow Brit Alfie Hewett – and to extend an incredible winning run at the US Open doubles which stretches back five years.
READ MORE: US Open U-turn paves way for latest title tilt for Gordon Reid
The former Hermitage Academy pupil told BBC Scotland’s The Nine: “Obviously it was a negative at the start but, fair play to them, they’ve held their hands up and apologised.
“They said they were in the wrong and they’ve made it right by reinstating the event.
“The US Open and all the Grand Slams have been really supportive of wheelchair tennis over the last few years especially, and given us a platform to show the sport and an opportunity to play on the biggest stages.
“It was a one-off, they were under a lot of pressure to make sure the event went ahead, and they just made a mistake.
“But, thankfully, they’ve listened to us athletes and they’ve changed their minds on the back of that.”
READ MORE: 'We had to dig deep to win' – Gordon Reid looks back at 2019 US Open doubles triumph
Reid, remarkably, hasn’t lost a doubles match at Flushing Meadows since 2014, when he and then-partner Maikel Scheffers lost in the final to Stephane Houdet and Shingo Kunieda.
The 28-year-old partnered Houdet to victory a year later, and then, after the tournament was not held in 2016 due to a clash with the Rio Paralympics, teamed up with fellow Brit Alfie Hewett for the first of three triumphs in a row.
The British duo saw off Houdet and Nicolas Peifer in the 2017 final, and repeated the feat against the same opponents 12 months later, before beating Kunieda and Gustavo Fernandez in last year’s final.
The US Open will be the first major tournament held since the coronavirus pandemic devastated sporting schedules around the world.
Reid and Hewett are aiming for their second major title of the year after victory in the Australian Open in January.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here