Laura Robson, Jack Draper and Alfie Hewett are back together for the second part in their pre-Wimbledon podcast series celebrating 100 years of Centre Court. This is all about Jack; growing up in a tennis household, football vying for his attention before teenage tastes of Centre cemented his love for rackets and balls. In a short space of time, he's gone from promising junior to top-100 threat; with a set off Djokovic at Wimbledon 2021 and four challenger titles already in 2022. Settle back and enjoy Jack's story, which is only really beginning...
Time Codes:
01:05 Jack sheds light on the injury which ruled him out of Roland Garros.
01:50 Alfie talks about winning the Barcelona Open and reuniting with Gordon Reid in Paris (episode recorded before Roland Garros).
02:40 Jack talks about his earliest tennis memory in Sutton, south west of London. Realising his love for the game.
03:25 His Mum was a junior champion and his Dad ran the LTA but does Alfie have any tennis connections?!
04:30 We all follow matches from dodgy court feeds and live scores, but what about when it's a tennis parent?
05:30 Superstitions and rituals of nervous parents.
06:20 Jack talks about his two-year spell at the Chelsea FC Academy in Cobham. What did he wear on his first day?
07:05 Did he ever have to make a decision between tennis and footaball, and what was the turning point?
07:45 So does it matter if you come from a tennis family? Jack says "everyone has a different story", Laura agrees.
09:05 More on Jack's early memories of Centre Court, especially watching Andy Murray win Wimbledon in 2013. We get quite a bit of detail, much to Laura and Alfie's amusement!
10:50 Jack was 11 at the time; was that the moment which made him believe he could become a pro?
11:30 Tim Henman time!
12:30 Jack talks about his epic semi-final in the boys' singles match in 2018, played on Court 3, and then the sold-out final on Court 1.
13:45 Alfie's interested in the transition from juniors to seniors; Jack gives interesting perspective on his journey.
14:15 Laura has huge experience of this, of course. She talks about the big difference between Wimbledon and the other Grand Slams.
15:15 Laura's keen to know if Jack met any good celebs. This takes us down an unexpected backroad...
16:45 We have a winner in the impromptu "most famous person you've met at Wimbledon" competition. A clear winner...
17:25 So. Wimbledon 2021. Round 1; Day 1. Centre Court. Jack Draper (wild card) versus Novak Djokovic (top seed, defending champion). What an experience.
18:45 Laura's keen to know what he learned from his Centre Court debut. Jack talks about the morning of the match and the weird sensation.
19:40 Alfie's straight to the point; how on earth did he win the first set?!?
20:30 Ticket requests and distant friends. Jack gets a casual invitation after the Djokovic match.
21:45 Having tasted the big time on the biggest stage, has that given him the taste for more?!
22:25 Queens next week. He beat Sinner and Bublik there last year, for his first ATP wins. A lot has happened since!
Credits: Production: Jonathan Overend and Danny Garlick. Mastering: Lee Sparey. Music: Dan Compton. Dummy Commentary performed by: Alastair Eykyn. Executive Editor for NinetyFour19: Jonathan Overend.