The Christopher Eubanks story – and why Wimbledon has fallen in love

An earlier version of this story used a word that was unintentionally offensive regarding Christopher Eubanks. “I remember thinking, ‘Wow, that’s some good hitting’,” Young tells The Athletic, speaking from America hours after watching Eubanks’ win over Tsitsipas. “He has some pretty good strokes and I remember thinking, ‘If he just had a little bit more he could be decent’.” The pair struck up a bond and a few years later, in 2012, Young asked a 16-year-old Eubanks if he fancied joining him for some tournaments abroad to get a taste of what life was like as a professional tennis player. “I just said that, ‘If you can shore up a few things and serve well, then the sky’s the limit’.” Eubanks displaying his powerful serve at Wimbledon this year Eubanks cites this period travelling with Young as key to his development: “It was huge, because it allowed me to practise with a player who was top 50 at the time, which not many 15 and 16-year-olds could do every single day. Now he’s got the belief and it’s really fun to see.” Eubanks himself said at the weekend: “I always said that I wanted to be a professional tennis player, but I don’t really think I fully believed it until my junior year.” Eubanks left Georgia Tech in 2017 and the positive impression he made there has followed him onto the professional circuit.