ALEX Simmons, who is coached by Totally Tennis head coach Jason Jokhoo at Greenacre, Newbury, has won a bronze medal for Great Britain at the 20th Deaflympics Summer Games in Melbourne, Australia.

The 17-year-old and her partner Daniel Tunstall, the second seeds, were drawn against fellow British pair Catherine Graham and Anthony Sinclair in the mixed doubles bronze medal play-off, after losing to the German pairing of Heike Albrecht and Ronald Oliver-Krieg in the semi-finals.

The first two sets were extremely close, with both pairings only dropping two games and each securing an important break of serve in each set. Sinclair, who was playing his third match of the day, after reaching the men's singles final earlier, became increasingly tired in the hot conditions, finally having to retire at a game each in the final set.

This gave the bronze medal to Simmons and Tunstall, the reigning mixed doubles national champions, with the score at 6-4, 4-6, 1-1.

Simmons also made it through to the quarter-finals of the women's doubles, where Britain's second bronze medal was won.

Graham and Sharon Templeman beat her and her partner Sally Clark, who lost their semi-final to Italian top seeds Michela Galbusera and Barbara Oddone.

A recovered Sinclair, the seventh seed, won a silver medal in the men's singles and a bronze with partner Darren O'Donnell in the doubles to add to the British medal haul.

Simmons and her twin sister, Beth, who was first reserve for the women's team in Melbourne, attend the Mary Hare Grammar School for deaf children of all abilities, in Newbury.

In addition to being coached by Jokhoo at Greenacre, they get tuition from Nick Elliot in Abingdon.

Jokhoo said of Simmons' win: "I am delighted that Alex has done so well.

"She works very hard at her tennis and deserves this tremendous success.

"The achievements of the whole tennis team are a fantastic boost for British tennis."

The Deaflympics Games are one of the world's fastest-growing sporting events, with more than 3,000 athletes from eight nations taking part.

The games, which were originally called the Silent Games, were first held in Paris in 1924.

In 2001, they were sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee and became known as the Deaflympics.