SHE may have missed out on the chance to follow in Sir Andy Murray’s footsteps at Wimbledon this summer, but Redditch star Latesha Grant insists her tennis dreams still burn brightly.
World number one Murray will once again spearhead the British charge when this year’s championships begin on Monday.
Studley High School pupil Grant had the chance to join him at the world-famous venue when she took part in the HSBC Road to Wimbledon Midlands Regional Qualifier at Billesley Tennis Centre in Birmingham.
The 13-year-old was playing for a spot at the National Finals of the HSBC Road to Wimbledon 14 & Under Challenge at the All England Club between August 14 and 19.
Despite falling short of a memorable outing at the famous SW19 courts this time around, Grant, who trains at Redditch HDA Tennis Club, is adamant we have not seen the last of her after losing out 5-7 0-6 to Talia Neilson-Gatenby in the second round.
“I’d give myself a five or six out of ten for how I played,” she said. “It was a tight first set, pretty neck-and-neck and I’m quite happy with how I played in it.
“I was attacking a lot and hitting the ball deep, but it was tough to recover from the last game of that set.
“I’ve played in the county version of this event before and came second overall. This is my first year playing in this and hopefully I’ll be back again next year.
“My mum was looking through a newspaper and then found the tennis club. I just started to join for fun when I was four years old and now I do it competitively.”
The HSBC Road to Wimbledon National 14 & Under Challenge forms part of HSBC’s investment in grassroots tennis – an area of the sport the official banking partner of The Championships has been supporting since 2008.
Each year more than 10,000 youngsters take part in the series of national tennis tournaments, helping to inspire the next generation of Wimbledon stars to take their tennis careers from the back garden to Centre Court.
There was also Redditch representation in the shape of Paulina Jurkowska, taking part in her first HSBC Road to Wimbledon aged just 11.
It was not to be as she lost to Angela Halton, but that could not wipe the smile off the face of the St Bede’s Catholic Middle School pupil.
“I was one of the youngest players here and it’s just been really fun playing matches against players as good as this,” she said.
“I was up against someone who is older than me and it’s just the power that I need to work on, as I couldn’t match hers, but that will come.
“I played in the county Road to Wimbledon last year and I won it, so I know what it’s like to go to Wimbledon and play on the practice courts.
“I am going to see Wimbledon this year on the first Saturday and I really like watching it. There’s all green everywhere and it’s really beautiful.”
HSBC is the official banking partner of The Championships and is committed to supporting grassroots tennis, helping to inspire the next generation of Wimbledon stars to take their tennis careers from the back garden to Centre Court through the HSBC Road to Wimbledon 14 & Under Challenge. Visit @HSBC_sport.
