Wimbledon 2021: Dan Evans orders radical change in British tennis mindset to stop celebrating plucky losers
DAN EVANS wants a radical mindset change within British tennis, saying: Let’s stop celebrating plucky losers.
The brilliant Brummie, 31, took just over two hours to dispatch of Spaniard Feliciano Lopez 7-6 6-2 7-5 on Court No2.
There are 14 Brits in action in the opening rounds of the men’s and women’s draws of Wimbledon but ten of them are wildcard entrants.
Which means whatever their result they are guaranteed at least £48,000 in prize money.
Rookie Jack Draper received enormous credit on the opening day following his Centre Court display against defending champion Novak Djokovic.
Evans was not having a go at the 19-year-old directly but believes many of his fellow contemporaries garner good headlines for playing well even if they are heavily defeated.
On the eve of the Championship, Evans had said his national team-mates can be ‘too polite’ sometimes and ‘would rather play a nice match and not upset anybody’.
The No22 seed said: “It’s a tough way to put this but we enjoy putting up a valiant effort.
“I don’t think we should be celebrating losses.
“Monday was a great experience for Jack Draper but probably he doesn’t want to lose that match. Yet it’s a great experience for him.
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“Jack Draper, I’m sure comes here thinking he can win a lot of matches.
“I’m not saying the media don’t give British players enough credit. I just think we don’t mind losing. That’s all.
“There are some pretty good wins out there but I’m not sure they get celebrated all the time is my opinion.
“I’m just saying I think we do celebrate a bit more the losses than we do the wins.
“I’m not saying the media are negative. I’m just saying as Brits, we could be a bit more positive with the wins.”
Evans, who has shot up the rankings in recent years since a drugs ban, would be the first acknowledge that he has to improve his own major record.
He has only been to the fourth round just ONCE in 19 attempts.
The British No1 was the epitome of efficiency and professionalism against the former Queen’s winner, who hit 37 unforced errors in the three-set loss.
Athletic Lopez was appearing in a record 77th consecutive Slam, which stretches back to the French Open in 2002.
And for a man who turns 40 in September, his longevity in the sport should be widely celebrated.
It is not known if this was his last Wimbledon appearance but he does not look like giving up just yet.
Evans, who plays either Serbian Dusan Lajovic or Frenchman Gilles Simon next, said: “Feli is a hell of a player to be able to do that. He obviously has a lot of help from his serve.
“But if I was still going, I would definitely continue – unless I fell out of love with it.
“I would give it a go. But I’ll be hanging on as long as possible out here. It’s a pretty good job to have.”
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