'First in 53 years' - Eastbourne Tennis director backs Jack Draper and Katie Boulter ahead of Devonshire Park - video Dailymotion

SussexWorld

Eastbourne tennis tournament director Rebecca James joins Derren Howard from Sussex World and believes the recent success of British players bodes well for Devonshire Park this week.

Transcript

00:00Okay, thanks for joining us. We're pleased to be joined by LTA's Rothesay International

00:05East One tournament director, Rebecca James. The tennis action begins at Devonshire Park

00:10this Saturday and runs through till finals day on June the 29th. It looks a hive of activity

00:16down there, Rebecca. Lots of hard work going on and it's looking great. And dare I say

00:22the weather forecast looks encouraging too. Another brilliant field of players for the

00:2950th year. How much are you looking forward to this year's event?

00:34I am really excited for another action-packed year in Eastbourne with some of the world's

00:42best players. As you mentioned, celebrating the 50th anniversary of international tennis

00:48in Eastbourne and the 150th of Devonshire Park itself. So as well as the thrilling tennis

00:56that we're all used to. Some new features this year include extra prizes and giveaways

01:03for spectators linked to the 50th anniversary in what is a very special year. New on-site

01:10activities with mini tennis courts and swing ball for those who just can't wait to pick

01:15up a racket whilst they're on site with us. And a new fan zone in the town centre showing

01:21the live action from Centre Court here at Devonshire Park. More mini tennis courts and

01:27a photographic display with 50 photos for the 50 years of international tennis.

01:33Great. That's a good idea for the screen in the town centre. It really gets the town involved.

01:40Which players should they be looking out for, the fans looking out for? And who are you

01:44most looking forward to seeing in action this year in Eastbourne?

01:49Well, I mean, everybody is in for a treat this year. Again, I mean, on the women's field,

01:56we actually have four singles, sorry, five singles Grand Slam champions in the mix. The

02:04women's doubles, we have eight Grand Slam doubles champions. And on the men's side,

02:11we have around 14 Grand Slam doubles champions in the field. So a very high calibre of player.

02:20And on the wheelchair events that we have running Thursday, Friday and Saturday of the tournament,

02:26which now features the men's event alongside the women's and the quad events,

02:31we're looking forward to welcoming British players Alfie Hewitt and Gordon Reed, who are

02:35fresh off winning their 20th doubles Grand Slam title together at the French Open just a few

02:41weeks ago. So, yeah, you won't know which way to look for all of the star-studded lineup we have

02:49across the courts here at Derwitch Park this year. Yeah, no, I can vouch for that. The wheelchair

02:54tennis is well worth a watch, isn't it? There's some really great games there last year, I saw.

02:59And as far as the British players are concerned in the singles, Katie Bolter, Emma Raducanu and

03:05Jack Draper, who won his first ATP Tour title last week, they're in great form. That's a huge

03:11bonus for, I guess, yourself as a tournament director and also the crowd, isn't it? It's

03:16really, really good. It really is. I think I read that it's the first time in 53 years

03:23that a British woman and man have won a tour level event in the same week.

03:27So, yeah, the success our British players are having at the moment is really exciting.

03:33You know, I know that they all love competing on home soil during this grass court season.

03:39The support that they get from the crowd and, you know, the crowd here at Eastbourne

03:44is very knowledgeable and loves their tennis. So, you know, that home welcome they get when

03:51they step out on the courts here at Derwitch Park means a lot to them massively. And I'm sure it's

03:58really exciting for the crowd to see our top British players competing as well. And, you know,

04:05there might be a few other players added to the mix later this week when the wild cards get

04:09confirmed as well. We'll keep an eye on that. When are the wild cards going to be announced,

04:15Rebecca? They will be confirmed on Friday afternoon for singles, qualifying and main draw.

04:21Great. Great. We'll keep an eye. And unfortunately, what happened to Andy Murray yesterday at Queen's,

04:27there was a potential that he may play in Eastbourne, but I guess that's all

04:31just up in the air at the moment. Yes, Andy did feature on the original acceptance list. But yes,

04:38I, like many people, obviously saw his retirement from his match yesterday at the

04:45Sydney Championships at the Queen's Club. So, I mean, first and foremost, you know,

04:50obviously wishing him a full and speedy recovery so that, you know, he can carry out his summer

04:58schedule as he would like to. Yeah. Fingers crossed. Fingers crossed for Andy Murray.

05:05And then back to Eastbourne, 50 years of tennis in Eastbourne, quite remarkable.

05:09And it has meant so much to the town and to so many people over the years.

05:14What has it meant for you personally, Rebecca? So, whilst it's my second year as tournament

05:21director of the Rosset International, I first came to Devonshire Park to watch the tournament

05:28as a seven-year-old. So, growing up in East Sussex, it was an annual feature for me coming

05:38to watch the tennis. So, from my personal experience, I can, you know, really relate

05:45to the impact that this tournament has on the local area, not just the town of Eastbourne,

05:53but, you know, county-wide as well. So, you know, when I reflect back on those memories,

06:02and, you know, it really was the highlight of my year just to come and watch the players,

06:08and it would always inspire me every year. I couldn't wait to get home and play tennis

06:15that evening. So, actually, now in my role, I can truly see the value of what we talk about,

06:23of our grass court events being a shop window of our sport, and such a huge opportunity to

06:29inspire everybody to pick up a racket, really, being a game for life. And, you know,

06:37the benefits of the game. So, yeah, I suppose that, from that personal experience, I can see,

06:45kind of, the tangible effect of what it has, and, you know, what the LTA is trying to do in

06:50Open Tennis Up, and, you know, get more people playing the game. Yeah, yeah, no, it's great,

06:56isn't it? It's so up close and personal there, and the younger fans can really get a feel for

07:01what, you know, what it's all about. And it's, I think it must have inspired so many people to play

07:06over the years. And just looking at the players that have visited, you know, some of the greats

07:11of the game, Navratilova, Henning Harden, Djokovic, the Williams sisters, who have been

07:17your favourite players over the years, and why? So, I guess, you know, I've seen a number of

07:25different eras of players over the time that, whether I was coming here as a seven-year-old, or,

07:31you know, the time that, you know, I've been working for the LTA. And ultimately, actually,

07:39what stays with me, and certainly when I look back to, you know, growing up, what stayed with me

07:46really was actually seeing the live tennis, the live action, and the atmosphere, the charm

07:57of Devonshire Park, that whole experience of being here amongst it all. Actually, that memory

08:03stayed with me kind of much more than, you know, any particular player. I'm sure it was the whole

08:08effect of seeing that live sport, and the inspiration that gave me. But, like you say, we've

08:16been blessed with the top stars over the years coming, and, you know, that is credit to the

08:24facilities that are here, the quality of the grass courts at Devonshire Park, and, you know,

08:29I'm sure we'll have many more champions in the future to come. Great, great. And just looking

08:35ahead, East Bourne will be a combined 250 event from next year. Can you give us a bit of insight

08:41as to why that happened, and what fans can expect from the Devonshire Park tournament going forward?

08:48Yeah, so the LTA's 2025 calendar sees a women's 500 tournament return to Queen's for the first

08:58time since 1973, and across all of the tour level venues we now have, each venue will feature men's

09:07and women's tennis, which is great for kind of the parity of the sport of tennis, which, you know,

09:15has great equality amongst the top stars on the men's and women's side. And, you know,

09:21kicking off the grass court season at Queen's with the profile and exposure and attendance that

09:29that tournament can have, you know, really puts a splash into the start of the summer season

09:37of our grass court events. But, you know, the tournament at Nottingham, and also the

09:45tournament at Queen's, sorry, East Bourne, will, you know, also feature men's and women's tennis,

09:52and are just as an important part of the calendar as well. You know, the long history of the

09:59tournament here in East Bourne goes a long way for, you know, the experience that the players

10:05have had over the years, and a lot will be the same. We'll have, you know, the same number of

10:11draw, sorry, the same draw size. We'll have the same number of players, same number of matches,

10:18same facilities, that same atmosphere and charm I mentioned about Devonshire Park.

10:25And, in fact, of the five Grand Slam champions, singles champions on the women's side that I

10:30mentioned, you know, if this were a 250 this year, four of those five would be eligible to compete in

10:36the event. So, you know, I think there is a lot to look forward to in 2025. For sure, there are still

10:45going to be some of the world's top tennis players coming here the week before Wimbledon to compete on

10:52some of the world's best grass courts. And, you know, I'm really excited and looking forward to

10:58continuing to grow the events and kind of share that special feeling of being

11:03here at Devonshire Park, watching that live tennis action with as many people as possible.

11:08Great, great. So, there'll still be some really top-level tennis for the fans to look forward to

11:12from next year onwards. Well, that's encouraging. And then back to this year. So, obviously, it's

11:19so busy for you and organising the players, the tournament as a whole. What are the main

11:25challenges for yourself as a tournament director?

11:30The weather, probably.

11:34Which, actually, being this close to the event and seeing the forecast that I have

11:38takes a level of stress away, that's for sure.

11:41Yeah, you must be on the weather app constantly, I should think.

11:45Multiple. So, of course, you know, that is the biggest uncontrollable that,

11:52you know, has a huge impact on the experience of everybody working and watching and playing in the

11:57event. But, you know, ultimately, the team here, whether it be our partners at Eastbourne Borough

12:05Council, with the grounds team that work on the courts all year round, the event staff that come

12:12and help us deliver the event each year, it's an incredibly strong group of people that help

12:19deliver the event each year. And, you know, huge credit to Danny Negus and the grounds team at

12:25Devonshire Park, because, you know, that is the highlight of why people come here. So, I think

12:33with their knowledge and experience and quality of work, it actually takes a lot of worry away

12:39from me. Good, good. Yeah, no, it's looking great, looking great at the moment. And finally,

12:45I think I read, I think it was Virginia Wade was the last British person to win at Eastbourne.

12:51Do you think we could finally have a British winner in the 50th year with, like we mentioned,

12:57the former Jack Draper and Katie Boulter and potentially Rad Khanu as well? Well, with the

13:03success the British players are having at the moment, it is certainly a possibility. And I'm

13:09sure kind of the crowd will be behind the British players to support them all week. But I have

13:16no doubt about, however, is, you know, the quality of tennis that we'll see on display

13:21throughout this week. And yeah, looking forward to some outstanding matchups on centre court

13:29throughout the week and crowning the worthy winners, whoever they may be. Good answer. Yeah,

13:35thank you. Well, thanks. Thanks, Rebecca. Really appreciate your time and hope all goes well

13:41throughout the week. And you can follow all the action live on Sussex World website,

13:49where we'll be reporting from everything from Devonshire Park. But once again,

13:53thanks. Thanks very much, Rebecca. Good luck. Thank you.

'First in 53 years' - Eastbourne Tennis director backs Jack Draper and Katie Boulter ahead of Devonshire Park

Category

Transcript

Recommended