Warwick's Willis handed Wimbledon qualifying wildcard

WARWICK’S Marcus Willis has been awarded a wildcard into qualifying for Wimbledon after his fairytale run at last year’s tournament.

Willis, who is a member of Warwick Boat Club, won six matches to qualify last year, before beating a top-100 player in the first round and losing to Roger Federer on Centre Court in the second.

He will definitely be at Wimbledon again this year as he has received a wildcard for the doubles.

This year the 26-year-old will need to win three rounds of qualifying at Roehampton, starting on Monday, to reach SW19.

And in the absence of Maria Sharapova, Willis will be the star attraction at the Bank of England Club, where spectators will pay to enter for the first time.

Seven Britons have been given wildcards for the singles’ main draws.

They are Naomi Broady, Heather Watson, Laura Robson, Katie Boulter in the women’s draw, plus Brydan Klein, Cameron Norrie and James Ward in the men’s competition.

All are ranked inside the world’s top 250 with the exception of Ward, who has spent much of the last year on the sidelines with a knee injury.

Wimbledon runs from Monday, 3rd July to Sunday, 16th July.