Giddins and Kay win fifth British Amateur Doubles title

Cambridge pair overcomes Vallat and James in grueling four set encounter.

Jamie Giddins and Ed Kay have recovered the British Amateur doubles title in a gruelling four set match at Queen’s on Sunday. It marks the fifth time they have won the prestigious trophy, despite Kay’s absence from the event in 2024. They overcame the dynamic pair of Bertie Vallat and Nick James in the final, a pairing first seen on court at last year’s British Open.

There was not much to separate the two pairs on the scoreboard through much of the first two sets. Giddins and Kay set up in their usual formation with Kay at the back of the court smashing balls out of the forehand corner to the tambour and Giddins holding his own in the galleries. Meanwhile, Vallat sent James up to dance in front of the net with his rackets volleys, while Vallat stayed back holding back Kay’s power hitting. There was plenty to hold back as Kay unleashed a barrage through the back half of the first set, taking the eleventh game to love.

Vallat was determined to match Kay shot for shot in the second set. Both players displayed some excellent retrieval off the tambour, letting the ball rattle around the corners before playing it at full stretch at the last possible moment. Giddins and Kay looked to have the advantage through the middle of the second set, but Vallat’s retrieving and James’s quick volleying stole the momentum back. By the 5-all game, it would be Vallat and James who were finding the edge in the long rallies, levelling up at 1-all.

Vallat and James carried the momentum into the third set. Vallat honed in his forcing, racking up errors from the Kay volley. Giddins counterpunched, finding a string of good forces of his own. For the third set in a row, the players went to an eleventh game. This one was characterised by some extremely long rallies, until James dumped a loose Kay serve into the net.

By the fourth set, well past the 2 hour mark, all four players were looking visibly tired, as the shots were becoming more laboured. Once Giddins and Kay had built a couple of games buffer, it started to unravel a little for James and Vallat, as they pounded a series of return of serves into the net. Giddins and Kay were prolific in their target hitting in the final set as they took the final set to love.

Despite the final set, there were plenty of positives to take away for Vallat and James, with the former set to play again tomorrow in the singles final against Robert Shenkman.

Match results:

• Saturday 2:30 pm (Doubles final) Jamie Giddins & Ed Kay (1) def Bertie Vallat & Nick James (2) 6/5 5/6 6/5 6/0

Order of play for Sunday (all times GMT):

• Sunday 2:30 pm (Singles final) Robert Shenkman (1) vs Bertie Vallat (2)