QUALIFIERS Chris Edge and Hamish Stewart, who have been rooming together all week, ended up as opponents in the men’s singles final at the British Tour event at Ilkley.

Edge, from Carlisle, who was beaten 6-4, 6-4 by his Glaswegian opponent, who is also 20, said: “We stayed in four different Airbnbs during the week.”

Tournament referee Peter Greatorex said after the final: “Hamish has not dropped more than four games in a set in all of his matches and I find that quite remarkable.”

Stewart, who won eight matches in taking the title, said: “I was disappointed to be in qualifying but I love the grass, I played well all week and served well all week, only dropping my serve once.”

His rating was low because he is a student at Tulane University in the United States and therefore has no British form to be judged upon.

Among the West of Scotland county player’s victims was Leeds Beckett University student Nick Turnbull, who failed to win a game in their quarter-final, having knocked out top seed Joseph Newman-Billington (third on the men’s British Tour leaderboard) the round before.

Edge, who is a student at Middle Tennessee State University, dropped serve in the third game of the first set and the first game of the second set.

The women’s singles final, which was played before the men’s decider, also on the beautifully manicured Ilkley grass courts, was closer.

Top seed Amelia Rajecki survived a mid-match wobble to win 6-1, 3-6, 6-0 against second seed Grace Piper in a battle of teenagers.

It was the fifth British Tour title of 2019 for the powerful 17-year-old from Nottingham after triumphs at Billesley, Corby, Loughborough and North Oxford.

She dominated the first set against her mobile 16-year-old opponent from Taunton, who was playing in her first British Tour final, and looked capable of knocking her off the court.

“I have a good game, an aggressive game, a big serve, but I can defend well and counter-attack,” said Rajecki, who is taking three A Levels next summer at West Bridgford College, including PE and psychology.

Explaining the switchback nature of the match, which started when her backhand began to misfire, Rajecki, who tops the British Tour women’s leaderboard by 400 points, said: “She played better in the second set, she relaxed and had nothing to lose but I refocused at the start of the final set.”

Rajecki, who has twice been a runner-up on the British Tour this year and helped Nottinghamshire’s women win Group Three of County Week at Ilkley the previous week to the Ilkley Open, added: “I have been given some wild cards into $25,000 tournaments in this country after winning British Tour events, and in the future I hope to play similar tournaments abroad and get up the rankings.

“America (college tennis) is an option but it depends how the rest of the year goes. I haven’t made my mind up but will by the start of next year.”

Piper said: “She was really good but it was a tough match and in the last set she was too good.

“But I take a lot from this week and it was good experience reaching my first British Tour final.”

Winners Stewart and Rajecki both received £200, runners-up Piper and Edge £100 and losing semi-finalists Finn Murgett, James Davis, Nadia Rawson and Amy Hoburn £50 each for the Tier Two British Tour event.

As far as the Ilkley Open was concerned, which ran alongside the British Tour, the notable achievements by club members were Alice Brook winning the 14 & under girls’ singles and reaching the under-16 final, Thomas Horsley getting to the 18 & under boys’ singles final and Penny Hunt and Cheryl Hagel winning the women’s 40 and over doubles.