Britain’s latest top-100 tennis player Jacob Fearnley says he would “definitely not say no” to advice from Andy Murray.
The 23-year-old Scot sits at 98 in the newly updated rankings, joining Jack Draper and Cameron Norrie in the top echelon of the men’s game.
The speed of Fearnley’s rise has been most astonishing. He was a college student at Texas Christian University (TCU) in the United States until May and was ranked 525th when he turned up for qualifying at the Challenger tournament in Nottingham a couple of weeks later.
Fearnley, from Edinburgh, went on to win the tournament, earning himself a Wimbledon wild card, where he reached the second round and took a set off Novak Djokovic.
Davis Cup captain Leon Smith has known Fearnley since he was an infant and is keeping a close eye on his progress, while another famous Scot is also certain to be taking note.
Fearnley has not yet met Andy Murray but hopes that will soon change.
“I really want to meet him,” said Fearnley. “Growing up he was a big inspiration and he was the figure who I watched the most.
“What he has achieved for himself and his country has been amazing, the way he fights on the court and the way he plays has been special to watch.
“Any tennis player growing up in the UK, and especially Scotland, he is someone we all aspire to be. Hopefully I can follow in his footsteps but I know it is a very hard task.”
Coaching is on Murray’s radar following his retirement, so could Fearnley, who has his countryman’s former coach Mark Hilton among his team, be the perfect project?
“Right now I’m very happy with the coaching I have,” he said. “But, if he wants to give me advice and help me in any way, I would definitely not say no.”
Fearnley has played four more events on the notoriously difficult second-tier Challenger Tour and won three of them to propel himself into double digits.
He has achieved his new ranking from only 13 tournaments, substantially the fewest in the top 100, giving him plenty of scope to move higher.
A look at 10 of Andy Murray’s greatest ever points from the ATP Tour
His next challenge is to see if he can replicate his success on the ATP Tour. He will play qualifying at the Nordic Open in Stockholm later this month, with his immediate target to secure a main draw spot at the Australian Open in January, which he is well on course for.
“It’s obviously not what I expected,” said Fearnley. “It came definitely faster than I expected but I put in a lot of hard work so I think it’s not too surprising that I was able to reach this level. It’s a great feeling and I’m really happy with the way things have gone.
“I’m aware this maybe isn’t the norm so I’m definitely trying to stay in the moment and not let too many thoughts and too much of what is happening outside of the court get to me. It’s very difficult to do.
“It is also finding time to enjoy what I’ve been able to do and be aware it’s an amazing achievement and something I’m not going to take for granted and enjoy it while it lasts. Hopefully on to bigger and better things.”
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