British hope Paul Jubb has a very different background from a lot of British players having been brought up by his grandmother on a Hull council estate after both his parents died when he was a child; he is considered to have top-100 potential
Tuesday 8 December 2020 14:52, UK
Up and coming British talent Paul Jubb says he is thankful for the support Andy Murray has given him after joining his 77 management agency.
The 21-year-old shot to prominence last year after winning the prestigious US college title to earn himself a Wimbledon wild card.
He cut short his stay at the University of South Carolina to turn professional in the spring but has not played a single official match in 2020 due to a mixture of the shutdown of the Tours and a niggling injury.
Jubb, who is now back on court at the National Tennis Centre, is being well looked after with two-time Wimbledon champion Murray among those keeping him company.
"He's been a good support," Jubb said of the former world No 1. "Everyone's different but obviously he's done a lot of things right so anything that he does you take from. Hopefully, I'll spend some more court time with him as well so only positive things."
He showed enough last summer to catapult him up the list of most promising young British players, with his scalps including now top-10 player Andrey Rublev in Eastbourne.
He then pushed Portugal's Joao Sousa, who went on to reach the fourth round, to four sets on his Wimbledon debut.
"It's definitely a tough time to turn pro but I think we've used this time to work on some things I wouldn't have been able to develop if I was playing week in, week out," he said.
"It's kind of been a blessing in disguise in some ways. It's been a very productive period for me but I definitely hope to be back playing on the match court soon."
Jubb is currently ranked 536 in the world but the youngster knows he still has a long way to go on his journey if he wants to compete with the elite in men's tennis.
He said: "Because I've got such a long way to go, it's kind of a daunting thought but it's all part of the process and that's part of the fun really, the journey. I'm ready to get stuck in and grind away and hopefully have some positive results in the future."
Jubb is now one of a select group of players on the Lawn Tennis Association's Pro Scholarship Programme, which provides up to £80,000 a year in support to players considered to have top-100 potential.
"I'm so grateful to be on the programme," he said. "Having people around supporting you and helping in any way possible to make your life easier and you just worry about hitting a tennis ball really, it's great. I'm just trying to use it to my full advantage."
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