Barry Cowan on Britain's tennis problem and his Sampras moment
Barry Cowan discusses why Britain fails to produce more tennis stars, citing opportunity, coaching and schools, and recalls his Wimbledon highs.
The Full Story
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Former Wimbledon player Barry Cowan has said Britain will always produce talented tennis players, but the country still has not worked out how to create them in larger numbers. In an interview, Cowan, who played at Wimbledon eight times, said the answer lies in opportunity rather than trying to spot talent early.
Cowan, whose most memorable career moment was taking Pete Sampras to five sets in 2001, argued that talent is spread evenly across any country, but opportunity is not. He criticised the practice of talent identification in young children and called for a much wider base to the pyramid. He also said that driven parents and exceptional athletic ability were important, but there was no science to it.
The former player said coaching has become a difficult profession. He suggested that elite coaches often have to choose between earning less money while being away from home for 30 or 40 weeks a year, or taking an easier job with better pay and staying close to family. He questioned whether the very best coaches are working at the elite level.
Cowan also pointed to schools as a problem. He said the LTA has tried giving rackets and balls, but a single PE teacher who does not know tennis cannot handle 30 children across six courts. The sport is hard to learn and requires repetition, he added, and that makes it hard to keep young players interested.
Reflecting on his own career, Cowan said his first Wimbledon appearance in 1994 was a nerve-wracking experience. He walked out to face the French Open champion, Sergi Bruguera, and got everything wrong in the opening minutes. But adrenaline took over and he managed to play well, losing in four sets. He described playing at the tournament as every kid's dream.
He also argued that facilities are getting better, with padel booming and clubs offering cheap memberships, but the perception of tennis remains that it is expensive. He said the base of the pyramid has to be much, much wider. Britain has produced Andy Murray, Tim Henman and Emma Raducanu, but the puzzle of how to bring through more players has not yet been solved.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | GB News |
|---|---|
| Cowan's Wimbledon highlight in 2001 was taking Pete Sampras to five sets. | |
| Elite coaches are leaving the profession because of the pay and time away. | |
| Opportunity, not talent identification, is key to producing more players. |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The channel treated this as a lively pub-style chat with host Lee Anderson, mixing nostalgia and debate. It focused on the reasons behind Britain's tennis struggles, with Cowan offering personal views on opportunity, coaching and schools, and recalling his own Wimbledon moments.
- “I'm a big believer that you've got to give opportunities to people. And if you have a wider base of the pyramid, you give opportunities, more opportunities to kids, and then the cream all rise to the top.”
- “I think coaching is very, very hard now. I think we're in a difficult situation, certainly in tennis, because if you are an elite coach, do you want to earn less money and have to work incredibly hard?”
- “We've had Andy Murray, we've had Tim Henman, Raducanu, obviously.”
Broadcast Timeline
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