[Wheelchair Tennis – Singles Final]
○ Manami Tanaka (JPN)  6-4, 6-2  ● Saki Takamuro (JPN)

■The two finalists often train together. “Sae has strengths I don’t have,” Tanaka said. “Practicing together helps us both win against international players.”
They are close in the ITF rankings — Tanaka at No. 13 and Takamuro at No. 14. “If I move up, I also hope she can rise with me,” Tanaka added, describing them more as teammates competing on the global stage than as rivals.

■The first set was a close contest until the final games, where Tanaka pulled ahead. At that point, the match could still have gone either way. However, Takamuro injured her right shoulder and required medical treatment between sets. In the second set, she was forced to serve underhand. Though Tanaka initially failed to break her in the opening game, she adjusted in the next game and seized the momentum.

■During the award ceremony, Tanaka raised her voice proudly and siad,  “I won!” This marked her first singles title.
“I’d been focusing more on doubles ahead of the Paris Paralympics, so this year I hadn’t had great results in singles. I’m just relieved I was able to get this result,” she said.
Although the loss was unfortunate for Takamuro, she was composed in her runner-up speech: “It’s disappointing, but Manami played well, so I can’t complain,” she said with a refreshingly frank tone.

(Japan Tennis Association)