Youngster serves up tennis-a-thon challenge
Oliver Appleby said he would be on court for a few hours more than the longest ever Wimbledon tie in 2010, which lasted 11 hours and five minutes [John Devine/BBC]
A tennis-loving teenager is taking part in a 14-hour marathon match to raise funds for his beloved scout group.
Oliver Appleby, 18, has been a member of Chatteris Tennis Club in Cambridgeshire since he was six - the same age he became a beaver scout.
Advertisement
People are paying to play him and sponsoring him while he is on court from 07:00 until 21:30 BST on Saturday, as he makes the most of the available daylight.
He is well prepared for the hot weather and will be wearing a hat, sunscreen and taking breaks. His mother, Anne, said she was very proud of her son, adding: "I think he is amazing."
Oliver Appleby said he wanted to do something to push himself mentally and physically and the tennis-a-thon ticked the boxes [John Devine/BBC]
Mr Appleby, from Wimblington, said his passion for tennis and outdoor activities started at a young age.
"Now I am 18 I have become a Network member of the 1st Doddington Scout Group," he said.
"Last year, one of our leaders took us on a summer camp to Belgium - our first international trip in 24 years.
Advertisement
"It went so well we decided to travel to Holland next year, but we need to raise funds for extra activities - so I immediately thought up a tennis-a-thon."
Anne Appleby, 60, said the club had done a lot to help the tennis-a-thon go ahead [John Devine/BBC]
Anne Appleby, 60, said Oliver was currently studying and hoped to become a sports journalist in future.
"He got his love of tennis from myself and his gran, my mum," she said.
"She would take me to Wimbledon to watch players like Margaret Court when I was a youngster and we always watched it on telly."
Mrs Appleby said Oliver took to tennis "like a duck to water" and the tennis-a-thon married "his passion for scouting and his passion for tennis wonderfully".
Advertisement
Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Related stories
Related internet links
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Vondroušová stuns top seed Sabalenka in Berlin semi-finals
Czech tennis player Marketa Vondrousova in action against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka during their women's singles semi-final match of the Berlin Open tennis tournament at Steffi Graf Stadium. Hannes Albert/dpa Former shock Wimbledon champion Markéta Vondroušová is finding her form on grass again after defeating top seed Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 6-4 in the Berlin semi-finals on Saturday. Liudmila Samsonova, the 2021 Berlin champion, meets Chinese qualifier Wang Xinyu in the second semi later - ahead of Sunday's final of the Wimbledon warm-up. Advertisement Czech Vondroušová was quickly in the ascendancy against the Belarusian, who then wasted the lead in the second set as the world number 164 stormed back. "I enjoy being the underdog," the left hander told the Berlin crowd after beating a world number one for the first time. "I didn't play for a long time," added the Czech, who missed three months due to a shoulder injury. "I'm just happy to be back healthy, and so grateful to play these matches. "When I saw the field here, I was like, 'OK, let's just try to win the first round,' and then, you know, now this is happening." Advertisement Vondroušová's only tournament wins came at the London classic in 2023 - the first ever unseeded women's champion - and in 2017 in Biel/Bienne. She also has a silver medal from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. This will be her first final since winning Wimbledon but she has now levelled her head-to-head against Sabalenka at 4-4. Wimbledon begins on June 30 and Sabalenka, who has 20 singles crowns including two Australian Opens and one US Open, heads to the third grand slam of the year still without a career title on grass. The Berlin semi came less than 20 hours after Sabalenka's marathon quarter-final against Elena Rybakina in the eastern German heat. The WTA 500 tournament in Berlin's Grunewald, with prize money of around €1 million ($1.15 million), is used annually by many top players to prepare for Wimbledon.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
'Welcome Kerkez': Liverpool fans excited for £45m transfer as Bournemouth confirm new signing
Milos Kerkez has been heavily linked with a move to Liverpool (Getty Images) Liverpool fans have been given further cause for excitement over a potential summer deal for Milos Kerkez. Just last week, Justin Kluivert was quizzed about the future of his Bournemouth teammate amid links to the Premier League champions. Advertisement Speaking to VoetbalPrimeur following a huge win for the Netherlands against Malta, the forward was expecting Kerkez's transfer to be completed sooner rather than later. Kluivert said "He'll probably go there. I hope so for him. "He hasn't really said goodbye yet, but I hope he'll make it happen there." It has been widely reported that discussions between Liverpool and Bournemouth for the left-back have taken over a possible deal worth £45m. Interestingly, the Cherries appear to have opened the door for Kerkez to leave having signed a like-for-like replacement in Adrien Truffert from Ligue 1 outfit Rennes. Advertisement A statement reads: 'AFC Bournemouth is delighted to announce the signing of French left-back Adrien Truffert from Rennes. 'The Belgian-born defender joins the Cherries on a five-year deal from the Ligue 1 outfit.' That said, judging by the reaction on social media, this announcement has generated more excitement among the Liverpool fanbase as many are expecting news on Kerkez very soon...
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Liverpool agree Milos Kerkez deal after Florian Wirtz with 'significant' Marc Guehi bid expected
Happy days: Arne Slot has already seen his title-winning Liverpool team significantly strengthened this summer (Getty Images) Liverpool have reportedly agreed a deal with Bournemouth for Milos Kerkez having finalised the signing of Florian Wirtz, while speculation continues over a 'significant' move for Marc Guehi next. The reigning Premier League champions are wasting preciously little time in reinforcing their title-winning squad under Arne Slot this summer, having last week struck a deal with Bayer Leverkusen for Germany star Wirtz worth an initial £100million and a potential further £16m in add-ons. Advertisement If those bonuses are met, the £116m deal would be a British record transfer, eclipsing the £115m that Chelsea paid to sign Ecuador midfielder Moises Caicedo from Brighton in August 2023. Wirtz has been on holiday since that deal was finally agreed following weeks of negotiations, having played and scored for Germany in their recent Nations League finals campaign on home soil, in which they finished fourth. In the bag: Liverpool have agreed a £40m deal with Bournemouth to sign Milos Kerkez (Getty Images) But he arrived on Merseyside on Thursday for a medical that was completed on Friday and is believed to have penned a five-year contract until 2030 worth around £200,000 a week, with an official announcement on the way. Advertisement Wirtz becomes Liverpool's fourth signing of a busy and unique two-window summer already, with Leverkusen team-mate Jeremie Frimpong having completed a £29.5m switch to Anfield last month as the long-term right-back successor to Trent Alexander-Arnold, who joined Real Madrid early in a £10m arrangement ahead of the Club World Cup. Goalkeepers Giorgi Mamardashvili and Armin Pecsi have also joined from Valencia and Puskas Akademia respectively, while Alisson Becker's long-time deputy Caoimhin Kelleher followed Alexander-Arnold out of the exit door as he joined Brentford for £18m. New target: Liverpool are now expected to pursue the signing of Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi (The FA via Getty Images) Slot has also been eager to address Liverpool's future at left-back, with Andy Robertson entering into the last 12 months of his contract and attracting interest from the likes of Atletico Madrid. Advertisement The Reds have been locked in talks for weeks with Bournemouth over Kerkez, with multiple outlets including the BBC reporting on Friday that a £40m move has now been agreed. The 21-year-old - an international team-mate of Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai with Hungary - is expected to travel to Merseyside next week to undergo a medical and officially sign his contract, becoming the latest high-profile departure from Bournemouth this summer after Dean Huijsen's £50m switch to Real Madrid. Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain are trying hard to sign Ukrainian defender Illia Zabarnyi, with interest also reported in the likes of Antoine Semenyo and Justin Kluivert. Bournemouth have already moved to replace Kerkez, signing French left-back Adrien Truffert from Rennes in a £14.4m deal earlier this week. Advertisement Liverpool's impressive recruitment drive looks set to continue beyond Kerkez, with The Telegraph reporting that they are expected to make a 'significant' offer for Guehi, the England centre-back who captained Crystal Palace to FA Cup glory - the club's first-ever major trophy - this season. Guehi has only 12 months to run on his current deal at Selhurst Park and has been linked with a host of clubs again including Chelsea and Arsenal, while Newcastle saw multiple bids for his services rejected last summer. It appears Liverpool would want to quickly use the funds gained from the sale of Jarell Quansah to sign Guehi, with the former poised to head in the opposite direction to Wirtz and Frimpong by joining Erik ten Hag's Leverkusen in a separate deal worth in the region of £34m. Liverpool have also been linked with strikers such as Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike, with Darwin Nunez expected to leave the club this summer, along with winger Federico Chiesa and one of Robertson or back-up Kostas Tsimikas. Luis Diaz has also been subject to interest from Barcelona and clubs in Saudi Arabia.
