Dan Evans’ professional tennis career has come to an end.
On Wednesday afternoon, Evans and Henry Searle were beaten 6-2, 6-4 in the first round of the Wimbledon Men’s Doubles event.
Evans was bizarrely scheduled onto Court 15 for his final match.
How badly treated do you feel Dan Evans has been by Wimbledon?
Evans has endured a tumultuous month in the lead-up to his retirement, with the decision to not award the Briton a wildcard for the Wimbledon singles event taking centre stage.
In an explosive post-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Evans blasted the Lawn Tennis Association, stating that he has not received a proper explanation from the organisation following his wildcard snub.
Dan Evans hits out at ‘shambolic’ LTA after playing his final match, ‘no one congratulated me on my career this week’
Evans, a former Davis Cup champion, first commented on the decision to schedule his match on Court 15.
“Listen, I actually messaged someone a minute ago saying it was quite cool that it was Court 15,” Evans began. “I had never been out there.
“I mean, yeah, it was all a bit fitting for how the last month has gone for me. It was pretty cool that, you know, the ground passes got on, and I enjoyed every minute of it.”
The British star, a former world number 21, was then asked by a reporter if he had ‘made peace’ with some of the controversial decisions made by British tennis organisers over the past month.
It is worth noting that Evans was also denied a wildcard spot for the Queen’s Club Championships, despite revealing his retirement intentions prior to the West London event.
How do you feel about Dan Evans not being handed a wildcard for Queen’s? 🤔
“I have no real view on… I just don’t understand the reasoning for, and nobody has given me a decent reason,” Evans stated emphatically. “If they said, Listen, you’re a bit overweight right now. No, I’m serious. Like, You’re a bit out of shape.
“But nobody’s had the minerals or however you want to phrase it to come over from the governing body, who I think I have done plenty for, and given me an explanation.”
I think that’s just… It’s pride, isn’t it? I don’t know. Is that the word? And if you’re not going to do that, and it’s certainly not Jamie Baker’s job to come and give me the reason why he didn’t give me a wildcard.
“It’s not the tournament director to do that.
Wimbledon Men’s Singles wildcards
- Grigor Dimitrov
- Jacob Fearnley
- Arthur Fery
- Jack Pinnington Jones
- Toby Samuel
- Stan Wawrinka
- Harry Wendelken
“I just think somebody could have come and, you know, sit down and spoke. Like, jeez, I paid enough. Like that’s their job. And that’s all.
“I’m not angry, but jeez, tell the truth or, like, you can’t give me a wildcard into Ilkley. The reasoning was they was all given out.
“I have been playing tennis for 16 years on the tour, and I have always known that the wildcards aren’t given out on a Monday.
“Monday before a ball is hit on the grass courts in Birmingham, how have the wildcards gone? We’ve not got a massive pool of players. So I don’t care about the wildcard.
“Listen, I would have loved to play singles, but… We all know why that is.
“Don’t give me some nonsense answer about they’re all gone to Ilkley,” the British star continued. “Come on, guys. That’s a total p***-take for me. Excuse my French.
“If you can’t have a conversation and be honest… Listen, if they turned around and say, Listen, you’ve hardly played. But it was, like, You’re a coach, you’re not getting one.
“No, I was out there helping another Brit when I’ve been injured. I didn’t see any of those guys out there helping Henry when he needed help. So that was my point. It’s nothing against the club, but somebody come and have a conversation.
“You know, communication is a big thing in tennis. That’s my point. You know, are they working this week? I have not seen any of them.
“Serious. No one spoke to me this week. No one has congratulated me on my career this week, yeah.”
Following the conclusion of Evans’ final match, the LTA – Britain’s leading tennis organisation – have posted a number of graphics on social media, celebrating the British star’s career.
Where does Dan Evans rank among the greatest British tennis players in history?
When asked if these posts made him feel better about some of the decisions made over the past month, Evans responded stating that the LTA have been a ‘shambles.’
“I enjoyed playing Davis Cup for my country more than I can tell you,” he said. “It’s the best, the best thing ever.
“But the last month has been nothing short of a shambles from them. That’s the bottom line. You speak to people; you talk to people.
“So yeah, anyway, but listen, it’s nice that you feel appreciated and that they thought I’ve helped in some way. Again, I don’t think we should play tennis to get validation off certain, you know, people or whatever.
“I think it’s important that that reaches the kids or people who are trying to become players.
“You know, we’ve got to do certain things to inspire them. I think sometimes that gets lost on as players being selfish, of course, because you’re in the moment.
“But it’s important to give a bit back as well, yeah. So hopefully those things inspire people to play.”
Dan Evans is correct
Dan Evans’ assessment of the entire situation could not be more accurate.
The British star has been wronged by the LTA and the leaders of British tennis – plain and simple.
For a player who has given so much to British tennis to be treated in such a distasteful manner is nothing short of a crying shame.
We are talking about a two-time ATP champion, a Davis Cup winner, and a former world number 21.
We are also talking about a man who gave up 500 ATP ranking points to compete alongside Andy Murray during the Scotsman’s final professional appearance at the 2024 Olympics Games.
For all his flaws, Evans is a modern-day legend of British tennis.
It is therefore a tragedy that he has been treated so abysmally by British tennis representatives.
