Evans’ path blocked by Wimbledon hero Willis

THE road to Wimbledon started with a win for Dan Evans yesterday, setting up an intriguing encounter with All England Club fan favourite Marcus Willis today. Evans defeated Evan Hoyt 6-2, 6-4 in the first round of prequalifying after he was denied a wildcard into SW19 following his year ban for taking cocaine. Willis — who won six matches to qualify for the main draw in 2016 and reached the second round where he lost to Roger Federer — yesterday beat Patrick Foley 6-2, 6-4. He does not think his close friend Evans should even be taking part in qualifying, let alone pre-qualifying. ‘He’s playing top-50 tennis,’ said Willis, now ranked No 730 in the world following injury issues. ‘It’s a shame for whoever loses. It punishes everyone. It’s a shame for Wimbledon because we have the best chance of qualifying for main draws. ‘He shouldn’t be here. He served his time for taking a recreational drug, which was not smart but was he cheating or was he harming himself?’ Evans was more pragmatic, saying: ‘I’m not sure me or Marcus add too much to Wimbledon. It’s a great tournament regardless.’