Britain’s Marcus Willis is in action at the Nottingham Tennis Centre next week, competing in the Aegon GB Pro-Series men’s $15k event, which takes place on the outdoor hard courts from Monday 11 to Sunday 17 September.
Willis, shot to fame at Wimbledon 2016, working his way through the wild card play-offs, then qualifying, winning 7 matches on route to a dream 2nd round appearance on centre court against Roger Federer. At this year’s Wimbledon, the 26 year old from Slough, partnered Derby’s Jay Clarke knocking out the 2nd seeds in a dramatic match on court 3 on their way to the last 16.
Willis has been a regular visitor to Nottingham, since his teenage years, and is now playing ITF Futures events in a quest to increase his world ranking.
The top ranked player in action is Lucas Catarina. The Monaco number 1 arrives in the East Midlands on the back of two recent titles in Portugal and Turkey, a current career high ranking, and will be looking to make it a hat-trick of titles in 8 weeks.
French player, Antoine Escoffier is also arriving in Nottingham in pursuit of his 3rd title of 2017, having 6 career singles titles under his belt, whilst as well as Willis, Brits Lloyd Glasspool, Neil Pauffley, Jonathan Gray, Ryan Storrie, Billy Harris, and Josh Paris are contenders for the title.
Tournament Director, Richard Joyner said: “This is a great opportunity to see some potential future stars in action. All of the current men’s world top 10 will have sharpened their skills at Futures events, on their way to the top echelon of the sport. It’s free of charge to come to watch, and a chance to get really close up to the action.”
Cllr Dave Trimble, Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture at Nottingham City Council said: “It is wonderful that Nottingham Tennis Centre is welcoming this Pro Series event. It is a testament to the level of facilities we can provide and I’m sure the people of Nottingham will jump at the chance to once again enjoy top quality tennis action at the Centre. It is a real chance to see some of the potential big names of the future and to get really close to the action.”
Men’s qualifying for the Aegon GB Pro-Series Nottingham is Monday 11 September and Tuesday 12 September, with the main draw Wednesday 13 to Sunday 17 September. The Men’s singles final is scheduled for Sunday 17 September at 11:00am, with the doubles final and singles semi-finals on Saturday 16 September from 11:00am.
Entry for spectators is free of charge.
As well as coming along to watch, you can also follow the scores through live scoring online
The updated entry list can be found at the tournament website