A Liverpool supporting tennis player has described the “mind-boggling” few weeks he faced off against Roger Federer at Wimbledon.
Marcus Willis, from Warwickshire, began playing tennis when he was nine years old. Now 32, he is still going, and is competing at The Qube Liverpool International Tennis Tournament at Liverpool Cricket Club this week.
Speaking to the ECHO ahead of the tournament, Marcus said he was proud of certain parts of a career which has been far from straightforward. He said: “I've been very fortunate to have people to support and back me because without that you can’t do it. It’s a career of highs and lows.”
He added: “The lows being very low and my high being Wimbledon in 2016 and 2017. I feel blessed to have lived that, I feel like I can offer good advice to these up and coming players on and off the court.”
In 2016, Marcus came close to quitting the sport and taking up a job in America. However, he decided to keep going and entered the qualifying stages for Wimbledon.
Six wins in the qualifying draw against top players such as Andrey Rublev saw him qualify for the first round Ricardas Berankis, who he defeated. This set up a match against eight time champion Roger Federer.
Marcus described the period as “mind-boggling”. He said: “Two weeks before, I was turning up to pre-qualifying and coaching a mini reds session at my club in Warwick on the Monday, and 16 days later I’m playing Federer on centre court, and the next day I played for my club in the Coventry league so it was a bit of whirlwind of a few weeks.”
Marcus was unable to beat Federer. While not expecting to win, he was still left surprised by the Swiss’ playing style.
He said: “The problem with Federer is people watch his best shots and think that’s what he does all the time. He did hit some good shots in the match but he’s just very very solid. It took me by surprise how little he missed. I thought he’d try to hit winners all the time and he didn’t.”
He added: “He did the basics very well and he made you feel there was a ton of pressure all the time. You could never really relax. He never really switched off and gave you those free points that a lot of other players do.
“He had so many different ways to beat you. He could defend well, attack well and change up the pace. It's not like you’re playing and you know what to do to win because he could just change, he can just adapt to who he's playing and that’s what makes him so good.”
At that time, Marcus was on a top run of form and could count himself unlucky to come up against one of the best tennis players of all time. But he always retained his self-belief, a factor which fuelled his return to sport last year despite announcing his retirement in 2021.
He said: “I was still good, I’d go and play my matches in France. I was beating players who were top 300 in the world quite convincingly. As long as I believe I can play world class tennis, I’ll keep playing.”
Marcus is enjoying playing at Liverpool’s tennis tournament for the fourth time. The tournament itself has been running since 2002, making it the longest running tennis exhibition in Europe.
He said: “It’s always really well-organised and attended. We’re really looked after very well as players. There’s organised dinners and physios here. It's a very professionally run event, and there's some good tennis being played too.”
He also praised Aigburth Cricket Club for its tennis credentials. He said: “It’s really nice. It’s been here as long as I can remember. It’s got a good stand set up and it’s a lovely area as a player. It’s a pleasure to come here.”
Marcus is also a huge Liverpool fan, which stems from his grandad’s time working in the city. He said: “I’ve always been a Liverpool fan, I go up to games quite a lot.
He added: “I love Jurgen Klopp, love his personality and the spirit of the team, it’s just fantastic. Win or lose, they always give it a good go. It's entertaining to keep up with when I'm on tour. I’m a massive fan of football generally.”
Marcus mainly focuses on doubles now, but is still hoping to “put on a good show” and be competitive at this year's tournament. Going forward, he is optimistic and is aiming to return to Centre Court next year.
He said: “I’m playing doubles now, I'm 220th in the world, I started last August. Things are going very well there. I'm aiming to get to Wimbledon again next year. My journey is still continuing.”
The Qube Liverpool International Tennis Tournament is running until tomorrow at Liverpool Cricket Club on Aigburth Road. You can find out more information here.
