Max Basing, world No 331, qualifies for Wimbledon after ‘week of my life’
Max Basing, world No 331, qualifies for Wimbledon after ‘week of my life’
Jamie BraidwoodThu, June 25, 2026 at 2:58 PM UTC
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Max Basing lost in the first round of qualifying at Birmingham, Ilkley and Nottingham but won three matches in a row to reach Wimbledon (Getty)
Max Basing will go from losing in pre-qualifying to making his Wimbledon debut on Monday after the world No 331 sealed his place in a grand slam main draw for the first time.
The British No 22, who received a wildcard into the qualifying draw, defeated the Swiss player Remy Bertola in five grueling sets on Thursday to complete "the best week of my life".
Basing, from Surrey, lost at the LTA's pre-qualifying event last week but was granted a place in the draw and took full advantage of the opportunity, winning three matches in a row.
The 23-year-old, who trained at Rafael Nadal's academy in Manacor as a teenager before spending four years at Stanford University in the United States, had previously lost in the first round of qualifying in ATP Challenger events at Birmingham, Ilkley and Nottingham.
His victory over Bertola was the first time he had played a five-set match, and comes just 10 weeks after he tore his hamstring.
"It's been crazy to say the least," Basing said. "I started in pre-qualifying last week, down at Southlands at Wimbledon, got to the semis and lost there this time last week. I just feel super lucky and privileged to gave still been given the opportunity to play this week.
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"This whole week has just been phenomenal, it's been the week of my life. Every day's gone my way. Just super, super happy and proud of myself. Proud of all the people I work with, my family, to kind of get to this point.
"Not many people can say they've they've already lost before the main draw of the tournament even starts, so I think that's probably a first. But I just feel really happy and lucky to be in this spot."
Basing trained at Spanish tennis legend Nadal's academy when he was a teenager and was able to hit with the 22-time grand slam champion on a couple of occasions.
He then played four years of college tennis at the prestigious Stanford University in California, graduating last year. He will play his first-ever tour-level match when he makes his Wimbledon debut on Monday.
Basing was joined in the Wimbledon draw by Oliver Tarvet and Billy Harris, who also won their final-round qualifying matches in Roehampton on Thursday.
Tarvet, who faced Carlos Alcaraz in the second round last season, defeated Greece's Stefanos Sakellaridis in straight sets while Harris came from a set down to beat China's Zhou Yi to reach the main draw for the third year in a row.
Source: “AOL Sports”
