Marcus Willis, Wimbledon’s everyman of old who played against Roger Federer, returns in doubles

Willis had not participated in the Grand Slam grass-court tournament since reaching the third round of the doubles in 2017 alongside Jay Clarke. This time, they renewed their partnership thanks to a wildcard and were eliminated in the first round with a 4-6, 2-6 loss to Max Purcell, the 2022 Wimbledon doubles champion, and Jordan Thompson.

“I have great memories here and when I got the wildcard I was quite touched,” said Willis, a 33-year-old Briton. “The next step for me is to win matches at this level and keep improving. And I feel like I’m doing that.”

Eight years ago, Willis – once a promising young player – was still living with his parents and earning $40 an hour giving lessons at tennis clubs. He won three matches in a playoff for lower-ranked British players to secure a place in the Wimbledon qualifying round. There he picked up three more wins – including against 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev, now a fixture in the ATP top 10 – to make it into the main draw of the oldest major.

A first round win put him in a match against Federer. Willis lost 6-0, 6-3, 6-4, but those 1 hour and 25 minutes against one of the game’s greats on the sport’s most hallowed ground will stay in his memory and heart forever.

“I mean, 2016 was a whirlwind. Within two weeks I signed up for the pre-qualifiers and almost didn’t get in. And then two weeks later you’re playing Roger Federer on Centre Court. Looking back, it feels like a lifetime ago,” Willis said. “A lot has happened in my life since then. Now I only play doubles. It feels like a lifetime ago, but in those three weeks I achieved more than I ever have before.”

When Willis learned that Federer would also be there as a spectator on Thursday, he smiled and said: “Oh, God bless him. It would be nice to see him. I’m still blown away.”

Willis announced his retirement during the coronavirus pandemic, when playing opportunities were limited, recalling reaching the quarterfinals of a low-level doubles tournament with partner Billy Harris, walking away with 40 euros (about $40) in prize money.

“I thought, ‘This is just not sustainable,'” he said.

“I didn’t really want to retire. … But when you have a family to support, it’s something you have to do,” explained Willis, who said he has four children. “I didn’t really hold a grudge. It was just something I had to do. It wasn’t that I was unhappy about it. It was just something that I thought at the time, ‘Well, I can’t do it. And that’s life. I’ve had some great moments in my career, and it’s time to move on.'”

Eventually he found someone to support him financially so he could afford to travel to tournaments and started playing doubles again two years ago. This week he is ranked 96th in the doubles rankings.

“I’m very proud of that,” Willis said.

His next goal? To reach a high enough doubles ranking to take part in the Australian Open next January.

“These are the places I want to be and they are exactly right. I have to keep working very hard,” he said. “I still have to improve.”

Willis is also registered in the mixed doubles at the All England Club with Alicia Barnett. If he wins the first round match, he could face Andy Murray and Emma Raducanu in the second round.

This would be another moment in the spotlight for Willis at Wimbledon.

“My life has been pretty crazy,” Willis said. “It’s always been a little crazy, so I just take it in stride and try to focus on the here and now.”

Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis writer since 2002. You can find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich

AP Tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis