England secured a silver medal in the men’s 3x3 wheelchair basketball final after being beaten 19-13 by Australia.
The game was evenly contested for a large period, but Australia started to pull away in the closing minutes to secure gold and leave England with a memorable runners-up finish.
Despite the defeat, England’s James Hazell reflected positively on the team’s achievement, praising the experience of competing on the Commonwealth stage.
“They were good, came out firing and we couldn’t do much more,” Hazell said. “We move on, we got a silver medal – we’re happy with the achievement we did as a team and it’s our first tournament like this together.”
Hazell admitted the team would need more time to fully analyse the performance, but believes the experience gained from the tournament will prove valuable.
“It’s difficult to reflect on what went wrong without properly watching it back,” he said.
The England player also highlighted the significance of competing at an event that brought together able-bodied and para athletes.
“It’s been an amazing experience – having both the able-bodied and the paras at the same time is brilliant, which you don’t get in many other major events,” Hazell added.
The squad’s silver medal marked a major achievement in their first tournament together, with Hazell proud of what the team accomplished on the Commonwealth stage.
“We’ll go out and celebrate with friends and family tonight – and hopefully seeing a bit of Glasgow,” he said.
