From rock bottom to solid gold, it was a love of tennis that hauled Heath Davidson from adversity and into the limelight.
The 38-year-old didn’t begin his tennis journey until he was 14 years old. Following a 10-year break from the sport – during which he faced an incredible period of challenge – Davidson returned to turn his life around, rising to the top to claim four Australian Open doubles titles and a career-high singles ranking of world No. 3 in 2022, among other accolades.
When asked to reflect on what quality drove him, Davidson said, “Resilience in my life in general, there’s been a few curveballs thrown … I didn’t have much going for me and managed to change my life around and turn myself into a professional tennis player and spokesperson for disability and inclusion.”
International Day for People with Disability presents an opportunity to increase awareness, understanding and acceptance of people with disability. In recent years, wheelchair tennis has become increasingly more integrated with able-bodied tennis through events such as the Australian Open Wheelchair Championship, and Tennis Australia’s All Abilities Week, which launched this year.
“It’s awesome we have the facilities here in Melbourne and around Australia that we’re all together, so we don’t feel excluded,” said Davidson.
“I’m in the gym with [Thanasi Kokkinakis, Alex Bolt and when Omar Jasika] is around, we’re all here training together and it’s not separate. Yes, we don’t hit together, but we’re all doing the same stuff … Props to all the able-bodied players for making us feel welcome and not making us feel excluded.”
READ MORE: Wheelchair tennis marks 50-year milestone with expanded Summer Series.
Tennis Australia is committed to making tennis welcoming, safe and inclusive for every body. The sport has come a long way in its 50 years, and though the road has been long, the pathways for player participation has presented current players and the next generation with a new world of opportunity.
“The game’s changed with all the racquets and chairs – the chairs are crazy now. My whole tennis wheelchair weighs six kilos … the technology has gotten a lot better, which has allowed us to play a lot more of a similar game to the able-bodied players.”
As we head into a Summer of Tennis, the Australian Wheelchair Tennis Summer Series 2026 promises to have its biggest run in the event’s history with three new tournaments in Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide in January, alongside the Australian Open.
“This coming January we’ll be the first country in the world to have three fully inclusive tournaments,” said Davidson. “[Credit to] the Aussie Open taking a shot on some people in wheelchairs playing sport – we’re the only sport in the world that is integrated, which is unreal … We’ve come so far.”
In the end, it’s not just about the trophies, gold medals or even Grand Slams for Davidson.
“I’m just a guy that’s very fortunate to play sport and be somewhat talented at it … I love doing what I do,” he said. “I love it, I love playing tennis.”
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