British winners at Wimbledon have been few and far between in modern history, with Andy Murray being the sole player holding the hopes of the nation on his shoulders. Murray’s two victories at the home of tennis have been acclaimed as massive moments in the history of sport in this country.
However, a British star from Birmingham has been making waves over the past couple of weeks, and that could potentially mean that a deep run at the Grand Slam for a Brummie could be on the cards later in the year. But, can we dare to dream of a shock result?
Biggest Win Of His Career
Evans recently celebrated the biggest win of his career to date, as he produced a stunning display to beat world number one, and 18-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic in the round of 16 of the Monte-Carlo Masters. Nobody could have seen a result of that magnitude occurring, as Djokovic was the red-hot favourite to win the competition outright.
However, Evans produced the best tennis of his career in the match, as he won 6-4, 6-7. It was a faultless display by Evans, as he made no double faults and won points on 62% of his first serves. He won five of the seven break points that opened up. Of course, there still needs to be a glimmer of luck when an underdog comes out on top, and that came in the form of four double faults. However, that is just a footnote in the win, as the headlines were made around the world of a Brummie outlasting one of the very best players to ever play the sport in Monte-Carlo.
Evans Taking Strides Towards Top
A Grand Slam title may still be just a pipe dream, as he will still be a massive outsider to claim success at Wimbledon later in the year. But, there were signs that potentially we could start to dream of a Brummie winning Wimbledon. The win over Djokovic was the first time in his career that Evans had won against a player ranked in the top six in the world. The victory was also a huge sign that Evans is continuing to develop as a player, as it was his first victory on clay for nearly four years at tour level.
He managed to keep his momentum going in the following round, as he knocked out eleventh-seed David Goffin in the quarterfinals in Monaco. He needed to come back from a set down to claim success in that tense match. However, his dream run came to an end at the semi-final stage as he was emphatically beaten in straight sets by fourth-seed Stefanos Tsitsipas. Regardless, we Brummies love a heartwarming underdog story, and we will be hoping that Evans can cause a shock throughout the Grand Slam season. His newfound form on the clay can be put to use at the upcoming French Open, which starts at the end of May.
