Let’s start with where I’m staying. One of the things that makes this fortnight unique is that most players, certainly Brits and big names, tend to rent apartments or houses in Wimbledon Village rather than stay in hotels.
There’s a website where people rent out their homes for the tournament – every year there’s a dash for the best places! The top boys will get a big house for their whole team and tend to stay in the same place each year. We’ve got a nice place, just me and my wife Aleah, and it’s just a walk across the common to the All England Club.
Morning: We’ll walk into the village to get breakfast and coffee.
The hope is you’re not first on at 11am and you can have a bit of the morning to yourself before getting on site.
Practice: My coach always sorts out my practice partner and books the court. I normally hit with Daniil Medvedev on the Sunday before Grand Slams, and we did that on Sunday. In terms of preparing for the match, the LTA provide stats on opponents -where they serve on break points, etc.
A lot of people like that but it’s not for me. My tennis is off instinct, it’s not off numbers. I can get a sense of where a guy likes to serve, or look at where he’s throwing the ball up – that’s a lot better to me than guessing based off statistics.
Dan Evans has guided Mail Sport through a typical day competing at Wimbledon
This year, he is staying in a nice house close to the All England Club with his wife, Aleah
Typically, Evans will head into the village in the morning for breakfast and coffee
Lunch: I like to eat two-and-a-half hours before the match but this is where tennis is different from most sports – unless you’re first on you don’t know what time you start. So if the match before goes to five sets you might need to eat again.
That’s why a lot of players use nutritionists at these top events. If you get your food wrong and end up in a five-set match it’s difficult. I’ve used the LTA nutritionist over the years but I’m old enough now to know what to do!
The player restaurant here is very good and you’ll see the majority of players eating similar things: pasta, rice, sushi. I normally go for sushi. It’s all healthy stuff which is not the case everywhere. In Rome there’s pizza and gelato, in New York, it’s burgers.
Normally I eat with my team but it’s like at school lunch – you come through with your tray and if you see a few friends you’ll sit with them and have a bit of fun. The Skupski brothers, Neal and Ken, I often eat with them. Or young Henry Searle, he’s from my way, the Midlands.
Locker room: The unsung heroes of Wimbledon are the locker room attendants. They have to deal with listening to us all day, tidy up and do all our laundry. There are two men’s locker rooms: if you’re a member of the club or a seed, you use the downstairs one.
I’ve been a member for two years now so I’m downstairs. They’re both nice but downstairs is a bit quieter. There are baths – not sure why anyone would need a bath! I’ve never seen them used.
Upstairs is for unseeded players so it’s much busier, a lot more hustle and bustle. They have a putting machine. There’s some serious mess – and the worst offender is a British player who has recently retired, I’ll let you work that one out! And then there’s a few who have some issues the other way – all their stuff has to be folded.
Last year Roger Federer popped his head into the locker room and we had a chat. That was downstairs – he probably doesn’t know the upstairs exists!
Evans will normally eat lunch with his team but also often sits with the Skupski brothers
He prefers to eat two-and-a-half hours before the match and the player restaurant is very good
Roger Federer popped his head into the locker room and chatted with Evans last year
Evans stays quiet and has no music before matches, but he will stretch in the gym
He is pro doing press conferences and speaking to the media, believing it is beneficial
Evans, the British No 5, will begin his campaign at Wimbledon against fellow Brit Jay Clarke
Pre-match: I like to grip all my rackets in the changing room and get my feet taped. Then I’ll go to the gym but I’m not a massive warm-up guy, just a bit of a stretch. You see people launching medicine balls around, jumping up and down like Rafa Nadal.
I just stay quiet. I have no music before a match. I just talk to my team, stay around the people who know me.
Post-match: Drop off your bags and get on the bike to warm down and have a chat with my team. If you’ve won and you’re sitting on the bike, that’s the best moment for me, not hitting the final ball or the on-court celebrations. Everything’s calmed down and you’re through – there’s so much emotion and you share that moment.
Some people eat straight after the match but I always feel full of liquid. I wait until I’m really hungry but that’s probably not the best nutritional advice! Then I go in the ice bath and then do my press conference. I’m pro doing the press, it’s good for the game. And you have a duty to yourself to give your side of the story.
When I lose I go into the village and chill with the people who have been with me during the week. If I’ve won I’ll eat at the house, order in or someone will cook. I would never eat at the club. I need to go home, I have to have some separation.
Then a bit of time to myself and go to sleep.
I’m pretty good at sleeping but if you’ve had a good, late win that’s tough. If you’ve lost it’s easy – you’re happy to get to bed and sleep!
