Chris Eubanks is the swashbuckling American tennis star taking Wimbledon 2023 by storm, causing a major upset by knocking fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas out of the tournament in the fourth round to clinch a quarter-final against former US Open winner Daniil Medvedev.
It is a remarkable turnaround for the 6ft 7ins 27-year-old athlete from Atlanta, Georgia, who had been struggling for years to break into the top 100 in the world rankings and last year kickstarted a commentary career with the Tennis Channel to try and get as close to the action as possible. Now, the man who acted as a double for tennis legend Arthur Ashe in Emmy-nominated CNN documentary Citizen Ashe is right in the thick of the action himself.
Prior to Wimbledon 2023, he had never got further than the second round of a Grand Slam tournament and had won two grand slam matches. He is currently ranked 43rd in the world.
Chris Eubanks' Wimbledon quarter-final run
Eubanks stunned world number five Stefanos Tsitsipas to reach the quarter-finals of Wimbledon with the biggest knockout of his career. The towering 27-year-old twice came from a set down to continue his fine run in south-west London with a thrilling 3-6 7-6 (4) 3-6 6-4 6-4 victory in just over three hours.
His impressive win over two-time grand slam finalist Tsitsipas follows success over British number one and last year's semi-finalist Cameron Norrie to set up a last-eight meeting with third seed Daniil Medvedev.
It makes him the first African American man to reach the last-eight at SW19 in 27 years.
"I feel like I'm living a dream right now," said Eubanks. "This is absolutely insane. When you paint all of the context - I've tried so much to block everything out and just focus on the next match - it's surreal, it's unbelievable. This has been a dream come true."
He made an unconvincing start to the contest on Court Two but battled back and floored Tsitsipas - conqueror of Andy Murray - with 53 winners, including 13 aces.
Chris Eubanks' upbringing in Atlanta
Eubanks was raised as the son of a Baptist minister Chris Eubanks Sr and his wife Carla, and holds deep religious beliefs himself, telling the Daily Mail: "The funny thing about being a preacher's kid is when you're playing tournaments on Saturdays and Sundays, you miss a lot of Sunday services.
“I think it's more so just about instilling faith at a young age is pretty important, especially to my parents, and I think faith can mean different things to different people. For me, one of the main things of having faith is just simply taking it into every walk of life, which could be also my tennis. It's just trusting that if I keep doing what I'm supposed to do, it's going to work out.”
Eubanks' father was also his first tennis coach, with the tennis star who turned pro in 2015 previously saying: "When I got to the age where I could run and swing a racket, my dad put one in my hand. It just kind of went from there doing the normal route of playing local tournaments and junior tournaments and just trying to work my way up."
Tennis inspirations and nicknames
Fellow Atlantlan Donald Young, who once reached the top 40 himself, was "like a brother" to Eubanks and tutored him from age 13, while Jarmere Jenkins, long-time hitting partner of Serena Williams, also helped the Wimbledon breakthrough star. Like the Williams sisters, Eubanks is one of few players to not carry a second-serve ball in his pocket.
As for his nicknames among tennis colleagues, WTA stars Sloane Stephens and Maddison Keys revealed in an interview during the Dallas Open that they have a few for the tall, slender athlete.
A sighing Stephens said: "Oh lord, don't even get me started on that giraffe. Jesus. We love Chris. We love daddy long legs." Wimbledon No. 10 seed Frances Tiafoe added: "Well Eubanks' nickname is really toothpick because he's so skinny."
Eubanks' love-hate relationship with grass
Eubanks recently said he hated playing on grass but is currently enjoying a nine-match winning streak on the surface.
"Those words will never come out of my mouth (again) for the rest of my career," he said. "The grass and I, we've had a very strenuous relationship over the years but right now I think it's my best friend."
Worldwide star potential
Chris Eubanks has the potential to be a worldwide star after his breakthrough at Wimbledon, according to former American number one James Blake.
Although the American - who won first first ATP title by winning the ATP tournament in Mallorca on July 1, the week before Wimbledon started - has been on tour for some time, his profile has exploded in the United States. And Blake, who reached a career-high of fourth in the world rankings, has backed him to compete at the very top of the men's game.
"He has become a superstar back home, which is great to see because he just deserves it, he is the most genuine guy," said Blake. "He's taken advantage of his huge moment, he played so well last week in Majorca and now just playing with that confidence he is going to go far and I do think he has a chance against Medvedev.
"He is playing free and loose and you can see what can happen when you have got a big game and play with a lot of confidence. He has got to be a contender now to become a worldwide star, he has got the personality for it."
Qualified for US Open
Eubanks' run at Wimbledon means he will now get star billing at the US Open next month and Blake has backed him to embrace it.
"It is going to be new for him but he is going to be one of the stars there, he might be on the side of a bus, he might be up on billboards," said Blake, who mentored Eubanks earlier on in his career. "And for him a year ago to be playing Challengers in Korea and toiling away, to be a star in New York is going to be hopefully a life-changing experience for him in a positive way. I hope he enjoys being a superstar because that is what he is in the making."
