How a Side Hustle as a Tennis Announcer Lifted Chris Eubanks at Wimbledon

livemint.com:

Chris Eubanks was getting to that age at which tennis players with no professional titles begin to wonder whether it’s ever going to happen for them. He was in his mid-20s, several years out of Georgia Tech, and bouncing around lower-tier circuits and Grand Slam qualifying tournaments. His friends Naomi Osaka and Coco Gauff told him he belonged at the top level of the sport.

But Eubanks wasn’t certain he could live up to that as a player. So maybe, he thought, he could belong there as a broadcaster. “Listen," Eubanks told his agent in 2021.

“If I’m still [ranked] 200 by next year and injuries haven’t played a part, I can do something else with my time." That something else became a recurring gig as an analyst for the Tennis Channel. But it turned out to be more than an unfamiliar landing spot for a frustrated player just below the big time. The job off the court changed his entire perspective on it.

And as Eubanks, 27, prepares for the first Grand Slam quarterfinal of his career, he credits that time spent in the commentary booth with reviving his game. “It really helps my perception on the court," said Eubanks, who had played all of 10 career matches at major tournaments before this summer’s Wimbledon. “I can take a little bit of the emotion out and say like, ‘Hey, if I were watching this match and calling it, what would I be telling myself?’" At this point, Eubanks might be reacting the same as every other announcer around the All England Club, who can’t quite believe what he’s pulled off.

The journeyman No. 43 who had never even survived the Wimbledon qualifying tournament first made some noise last week when he took down British No. 1 Cam Norrie in the second round, but he became appointment viewing here on Monday