Parker: I should have won Wimbledon qualifier

Stuart Parker (GBR) playing in the Wimbledon Gentlemen’s singles Qualifying at The Bank of England Sports Centre, Roehampton. The Championships 2021. Held at The All England Lawn Tennis Club, Wimbledon. Picture: AELTC/JED LEICESTER

The Islander finished 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 down in his men’s singles opener against former world top-30 player Dudi Sela, despite winning more individual points than his rival at the Bank of England Sports Centre in Roehampton.

Parker, ranked 573 in the world, was handed a wildcard entry into the preliminary stages for arguably the sport’s greatest tournament – and a wildcard entry into the main draw of the men’s doubles, alongside fellow Brit James Ward.

‘I’m still trying to process it,’ said the 23-year-old.

‘The guy [Sela] is a lot more experienced than me. He got up to 29 in the world in the past – he’s a good player. But the toughest part is, if you look at the stats, I pretty much dominated everything. I won more points than him in the match and still lost. That’s tough to take.

‘The fact I knew I should have won it … it hurts a lot, especially with it being Wimbledon. It’s not like it was a Futures Tour match I should have won.’

However, Parker, who played in the qualifiers for the Queen’s Club Championships last week, does admit the match may pay dividends down the line.

‘I’m sure in a couple of weeks or even months when I get some good results again I’ll look back on this and think it’s a good thing,’ he said. ‘Sometimes it is better to lose because of what you learn. The experience I’ve gained over the last two weeks is incomparable to what I would have gained from Futures tournaments.

‘It will definitely help me. I don’t know when, but I know it will eventually.’

Parker will partner Ward, who reached the third round of the men’s singles in 2015, in the men’s doubles in south-west London when the Wimbledon championships begin.

‘We’ll start preparing with some practice and some doubles tactics to get ready,’ Parker explained. ‘It’s another chance and hopefully we can do well.’

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