Stoke Newington tennis ace Bramble given a big shock by British number one Konta
British number one Johanna Konta was in the crowd at The Jaguar Championship final at David Lloyd Raynes Park (pic onEdition) - Credit: onEdition
Stoke Newington’s Carol Bramble had never met a celebrity before, so having British number one Johanna Konta watching her play in the final of the Jaguar Championships was a big shock.
Bramble and David Lloyd Enfield tennis club team-mates Kirsty Meggitt, Mark Burnett and Peter Hodge descended on Raynes Park for the national final, after more than 1,600 players from 417 teams had taken part in the second year of the mixed-doubles event for adults in both improver and advanced categories.
And Konta was watching on, with a prize of Wimbledon Centre Court tickets up for grabs, plus the opportunity to drive Jaguar’s All-New F-PACE – World Car of the Year 2017 – for a weekend.
And while David Lloyd Enfield missed out on top honours, it didn’t take anything away from a special day for 49-year-old Bramble, who said: “It was fantastic to be in the final, a real honour to be involved in the tournament.
“We didn’t think we would be able to get the opportunity so it’s a great achievement. We were quite lucky, another team pulled out and there was a problem with the scores in one of the games so we got invited to the finals, so we were definitely making the most of the opportunity.
“It’s fantastic for someone like Johanna Konta to be at a competition like this, really inspiring and encouraging for people like us who don’t play tennis all that often to do more.
“I’ve never met a celebrity before either!”
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Teams had to battle through club competitions and regional finals to reach the showcase and Konta – who is at Wimbledon in a few weeks’ time – was more than impressed with what she saw.
“What Jaguar are doing is really positive, encouraging people to get into tennis and be active, and it’s a great way of promoting the sport I love and I know a lot of people really enjoy playing,” she said.
“The players did fantastically, they were looking impressive and they were having fun and lots of enjoyment. All of us are trying to get tennis promoted in a really positive way and the more people who see it on screen or on papers then the more interest it has.”
Johanna Konta was speaking at The Jaguar Championships as part of Jaguar’s partnership with David Lloyd Clubs. Visit jaguar.co.uk to find out more about the F-PACE, the Official Car of The Championships, Wimbledon.
