Andrew Castle holds court before the return of tennis to SW19
The BBC commentator talks to Georgia Humphreys about the return of Wimbledon
There’s one dramatic moment from his years in the Wimbledon commentary box that particularly stands out for Andrew Castle.
It was the 2013 men’s singles final when Great Britain’s Andy Murray won and, after the final ball from Novak Djokovic went in the net, Tim Henman leaped up next to him.
“Henners smacked me right in the head with his elbow – I assume accidentally. He almost knocked me unconscious!”
Surrey-born Castle, 57 – who played professional tennis between 1986 and 1992, and was the British number one at one point – is hoping for similar excitement at Wimbledon 2021.
“But the fact that Wimbledon is going to be on and in front of people, with a bit of luck with the sun shining, I just think it’s a fabulous thing,” says Castle, who has daughters Georgina, 28, and Claudia, 26, with wife Sophia.
“I’d love to see Roger Federer getting into the second week, because that would be a major story at the age of 39,” he says excitedly, when asked for his predictions. “And I’d like Andy Murray to do the same thing.”
When it comes to the women, Naomi Osaka has now confirmed she won’t be playing at Wimbledon this year, though she will compete at the Olympics in Tokyo.
Last month, the 23-yearold Japanese player, who’s a four-time grand slam champion, withdrew from the French Open after talking about her battles with depression and social anxiety, amid a row over her decision not to fulfil her media commitments.
“The thing with anybody famous, you live and die with your own actions; people are judging you the whole time, they’re watching you, they’re observing you,” suggests Castle. “And even though we can often quote how much money she makes, and how celebrated she is, the thing is, every room that Naomi Osaka goes in, every court she walks on, people are staring at her.
“It’s a bit like being a royal in some ways, or being a famous pop star, or anybody that celebrated. I don’t know anybody that hasn’t been altered by that experience.
“You’ve got to be pretty strong to come through these things, and hopefully, she’ll find that strength to do so and the support elsewhere as well.
“When she apologised for the poor messaging to journalists and to others, it was a good thing to do. Because if we all get it, everyone can help and understand and make it better in the future.”
Castle still plays loads of tennis and recently played former British number one Greg Rusedski in an exhibition match at Gleneagles.
“You compete hard and you run well, and nothing hurts, and then afterwards, I went back to my hotel room and just flopped out – you just lie there in pain,” he says. “And the next day, neither of us could walk very much.
“I like to keep the tennis up, because it’s something that I fell in love with when I was seven, eight, and I still am.”