Tim Henman tells the Daily Mail that he’s grown impatient with the Lawn Tennis Association’s plans for developing top pros.
Andy Murray trained under his mother Judy before being sent to Spain. Murray is ranked No. 2 while the next highest ranked British male is James Ward at No. 216.
“It’s frustrating because there is no magic secret," said Henman. “If you look at Spain and France, who have way more players in the top 100, their base of the pyramid is vast compared to the British system. They have so many kids playing. But it’s not purely a numbers game. We need to get the best athletes — those who are in the first teams for football, rugby, hockey and cricket — with a tennis racket in their hands. You need massive investment at the bottom and strong leadership from the top. That’s been part of the problem.
“I left the junior game in 1992. If you think about the hundreds of millions invested since then, it’s frightening! What have we had to show for it? We’ve got better facilities and tournament structure, but at the end of the day you’re interested in producing top players and we haven’t done that. I’m fed up with asking people to be patient."