Phil Pratt urging wheelchair basketball teammates to make history at the Paralympics

By Milly McEvoy at Bercy Arena

Cardiff’s Phil Pratt believes his men’s wheelchair basketball side showed that when the goings get tough, they get tougher as they advanced to the Paralympic semi-finals.

Pratt led the side in assists with 18 at the Bercy Arena as his team battled past Australia 84-64 to reach the last four at Paris 2024.

GB were made to work for their win holding only a three-point lead at half-time before a change in gameplan helped them to pull away from the team in green and gold.

“The Aussies are a very physical team, and I feel like at times we need a bit of a chip on our shoulder to get us going,” said Pratt, who is part of Aldi’s Nearest and Dearest programme in partnership with ParalympicsGB, helping to maximise support and minimise potential distractions for athletes so that they can focus on their performance.

“And there were a few niggles, a few big hits going against us, and I think that got us going to be honest. Ben Fox got taken out at one point and then went on to score six points in a row.

“And that just shows the kind of character we have and the culture we have built over years and years and shout out the National Lottery for their support in that.

“Our culture is unbelievable, we never give up, when things get tough is when we play really good basketball.”

Pratt, who captains the side at his second Paralympic Games, admitted he did not have his best game, usually serving as one of the side’s most prolific scorers.

Instead, he scored only two points as Ben Fox, Gregg Warburton and Lee Manning scored 69 points between them.

He added: ““It was exhausting. They threw everything at us, their defensive gameplan was very good.

“We have had a lot of rhythm in this tournament, and they completely shut that down in the first half.

“Credit to our coaches, they came up with another gameplan, settled things down and got a good press break going.

“We had to change a few things – Gregg Warburton, Lee Manning and Ben Fox were unbelievable. They carried us the whole way.

“I’m so proud to be part of this team, this is what it is about. I loved playing wheelchair tennis, but this is why I’m in a team – the camaraderie and support we’re giving each other is unbelievable.”

Pratt will now lead GB into a semi-final as they look to reach the gold medal match for the first time since 1996.

No players remain from that side, although some were in attendance in Paris, and serve as a source of inspiration for the current team.

They may well be back to see ParalympicsGB take on Germany in the semi-final on Thursday, with gB having already beaten them 75-66 in the group stages.

“The group game, there are certain things we can take moving on to the semi-final, but it is a complete fresh game,” Pratt said.

“Germany is an unbelievable team with some of the best players to ever play the game, elite players.

“We are going to have to come out with our A game, the group game is probably irrelevant now, we will have a fresh game plan going into the semi-final.”

Aldi are proud Official Partners of Team GB & ParalympicsGB, supporting all athletes through to Paris 2024.